Black Lightning: Legend of the Kurodenkou
by HnS-Ryouichi
Summary: Wreathed in black lightning, there is only one path left for him to walk. This path traveled by the legends of old is a dangerous one indeed, but that doesn't stop him, for he is Akatsuki no Uzumaki Naruto, the Kurodenkou. NarutoxOC
1. Prologue: Brothers

**Code: Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Itachi. I wish Itachi was mine though. **

**Ben: Gay-ass.**

**Code: You idiot. o3o **

**Revised and Edited: 5/21/07  
**

**Black Lightning**

Prologue: Brothers

xxxx

_"Sometimes, being a brother is even better than being a superhero." Marc Brown_

xxxx

Eight-year-old Uzumaki Naruto stood in front of the main gates of Konoha, waiting impatiently. It'd been fifteen minutes by now - Hey, can you blame a little kid? - and yet the person he'd been waiting for hadn't shown up yet. So long... So lonely... So... What was that? A flicker of movement was unnoticed by the blond, who had begun looking around wildly, as if he were being hunted. Had someone found out about him? Were the civilians here to beat him again? Oh, if only...

A cloaked figure dropped from the top of the wall, landing silently and effortlessly next to Naruto, who had yet to realize the presence. Waiting for but a moment, the figure approached the short blond and tapped him on the shoulder. Naruto whirled around, his expression one of fear, until he recognized who the person in front of him was. He couldn't help but shiver at the sight of blood - large quantities of it - on the cloak. He had been told of what the figure was going to do, but he had never imagined it to be so... _bloody_. Perhaps there was more to being a shinobi than using cool jutsu...

"You're late," Naruto whined, shaking the negative thoughts out of his head. Shinobi were shinobi, and that was that. "I've been here for _twenty_ whole minutes!"

"I couldn't help it. While taking care of my... _errands_, I got a little sidetracked with something else. I'm here though, shouldn't that mean anything?" The young man couldn't help but chuckle at his younger companion's antics, which now consisted of flailing short arms wildly over his blond hair.

"So, uh, what made you take so damn long, Itachi-niisan?"

"Language, Naruto," he warned, lowering his hood. Sapphire blue eyes met with cold onyx eyes. The black eyes flashed red, the Sharingan. A smirk appeared on Uchiha Itachi's face when Naruto ignored the Sharingan and continued to stand defiantly, as if challenging the older boy. "Oh, nothing much," he said offhandedly, answering Naruto's question. "I just left my otouto a going away present," said Itachi quietly.

"Ah, us kids and our presents," Naruto agreed, though halfheartedly. He didn't want to know what the present was. Judging by the large quantities of dried blood on Itachi, he suspected something that he wouldn't be able to stomach should he know.

The two companions left the large gate, and it was quite a while until they finally lost sight of Konoha's tall walls. The pace was too slow - Oinin would be after them within two days.

"Hey, um, Itachi-niisan, when do I get to start learning those cool jutsu that shinobi do?" Naruto asked, breaking the long silence.

Silence and an emotionless stare greeted him.

"Uh, I'll take that as a 'later'."

They continued forward in silence, at a snail's pace. Inside, Itachi was trembling in impatience. He mentally ground his teeth together. Oinin were known for their relentlessness. There were times where they chased their prey through foreign nations, risking outright war. At this pace, they'd be caught before the day ended by tomorrow. Of course, he couldn't just abandon Naruto either. Uchiha Itachi never did anything without reason. He had decided to save Naruto from the hell that is Konoha, as well as accomplishing his own goals at the same time, for the reason that the treatment of the blond was undeserved.

"Naruto," Itachi let out in a stern voice. At the mention of his name, Naruto looked up, confusion etched across his face. "I believe that I've made you do enough book work for now. Tomorrow morning, we begin your training."

The blond smiled from ear to ear, just barely withholding a shout of joy. Finally, he would become a shinobi just like his adopted niisan. He'd become just as strong as him, and in due time, he wished to become a Kage, just not in Konoha.

"I just want you to know, it's going to be tough," the Uchiha warned. "Don't blame me if you don't survive the training."

"Pft," Naruto scoffed, his smile turning into a determined grin. "You know me, Itachi-niisan. I'll never give up! I'll try my best, I promise."

"We'll see about that, otouto," Itachi growled in annoyance at his charge's attitude. To think that he'd treat the training as if it were a plaything. Itachi glanced around, taking note of the environment. They were in a small clearing, and it was much too dark, too dark to even see more than five feet in front of them. "It's too late at night to proceed any further. I know that there's a full moon tonight, but we're traveling through the densest parts of the woods, to escape detection. I suppose that we'll camp here for the night."

"Hai, niisan."

Itachi unfurled a sleeping bag that he had been carrying for Naruto. He himself had nothing on him, because he was expecting to travel lightly. If he'd known that Naruto would've held him up this much, he'd have brought a pillow... Naruto crawled into the sleeping bag and fell asleep almost immediately, the walking having taken a heavy toll on the still small child. It was to be expected - Naruto had only been in the Academy for a few months, and had no chance to build up stamina. While the blond snored loudly, Itachi sat in a tree branch, standing guard vigilantly, as an Uchiha should.

xxxx

_"A brother is a friend given by Nature." Jean Baptiste Legouve  
_

xxx

Naruto smelled food. He opened his eyes groggily. What time was it? The sky was a light blue in hue, with tints of red. That meant it was dawn. At least he'd learned _something_ from his time at the Academy. The blond stood up slowly and stumbled over to a campfire, which was burning softly. He groaned at the time yet again, rubbing his eyes all the while. Naruto never really was a morning person. That was why he'd hated going to the Academy, having to wake up so early every day. Having slept late at night yesterday, and woken up early today, he felt very tired.

"You're awake," Itachi commented. He truly was a man of few words. "We begin after breakfast."

He handed Naruto two fishes on sticks, which were quickly devoured and finished by the time Itachi had finished one. Impatiently, Naruto got up and began stretching. He'd been taught to stretch before training, because suffering an injury would put back training possibly days or weeks, which would do more harm than good. And people called him an idiot... After finishing his second fish, Itachi stood up and walked over to a set of trees at the edge of the clearing, motioning for the blond to follow. Once there, he handed Naruto a kunai. It was blunt - he obviously didn't want Naruto to hurt himself.

"We'll begin with chakra control."

"Why would I need that?" Naruto said, frowning. "What is it anyway?"

"This exercise will fine-tune the control over your own chakra, letting you mold it more efficiently and use less chakra when performing jutsu," he said, walking vertically up a tree without the use of his hands. "I want you to cut the bark with the kunai as you go higher, to mark your progress"

"Oh... I think I get it now."

"Let us see if you _truly_ understand, Naruto. Focus chakra into your feet so that you stick to the tree. Try to walk to the top."

Naruto focused chakra into his feet, then took a running start towards the tree. He was only able to take two steps before falling off and onto his behind. Seeing this, Itachi sighed.

"Naruto, if you're going to fall, at least do it without injuring yourself." Mentally, Itachi was annoyed. '_It was to be expected that he still hasn't learned chakra control of any level at this age. Hell, I doubt he even knows what the actual mechanics of using chakra are. He's probably just using gut instinct._'

Naruto grumbled a heated reply at the comment, but nodded. Falling on your ass wasn't a pleasant feeling, and he wasn't keen on that happening again. Naruto quickly returned to his exercise, running up and falling off the tree repeatedly while Itachi cleaned up the camp. It wasn't until Itachi had returned from scattering the remains of the campfire that Naruto had found out how to effectively land on his feet safely. Itachi nodded, acknowledging Naruto's accomplishment, but was slightly disappointed at the speed in which Naruto had learned to recover from a fall. However, the blond was also learning to climb the tree more quickly than others.

After an hour of checking up on his weapons and polishing his katana, Itachi returned to see that Naruto had improved, if slightly, now being able to go about five feet up the tree. It was a definite improvement from the two feet that Naruto had started with, and was rapid, considering Naruto's status as an Academy student. Still, the Uchiha prodigy wondered why Naruto had only improved three feet. You'd think that falling off multiple times would've taught the blond to concentrate chakra more heavily rather than incrementally.

"That's enough for now, Naruto. Let's move out before the Oinin find our campsite."

They traveled late into the afternoon, the sun burning down upon the tired blond at this time. Itachi left the blond with a canteen of cold water, having gone to forage for food. Left to his own devices, Naruto did the only thing available to him. He trained. Picking up the same blunt kunai, he chose a tree and began the same process of running up and falling down, the only addition being his ability to now recover from his falls. No more than ten minutes passed when Itachi returned with two rabbits. Amazing what a shinobi could do, really. He created a small but concentrated fire with a Katon jutsu, the purpose of it being that he didn't want to attract attention with large amounts of smoke. Being smokeless and hot at the same time, Itachi had no need to worry.

"Lunch," he announced in a matter-of-fact tone. Two roasted rabbits, minus the skin, lay on makeshift dishes made from wood that a Kage Bunshin had created. As if he would die if he didn't eat as fast as he could, Naruto gulfed down the food. Itachi could swear the blond literally inhaled it. That just wasn't normal.

Naruto quickly returned to training after the meal, but suffered a stomach-ache in response to the lack of rest after a meal.

'_Just like Sasuke, he's determined to prove himself. One year ago, only Naruto would've had the actual determination to become stronger, while Sasuke would merely look up at me, trying to imitate me. Now, both have the potential to rise to greater heights._'

He left Naruto to his training, leaving to set up a few traps for the soon-to-be-coming Oinin and to scout out the area. In two hours, Itachi returned, thoroughly satisfied with his work. If the traps didn't kill the Oinin, nothing save himself would.

'_Thirteen feet,_' Itachi noted. '_Not bad. He is improving exponentially._'

"Naruto, time to head out." Itachi gave one of his rare smiles. "If you can keep up with me until the we reach the border of Hi no Kuni, I'll teach you a jutsu."

"A jutsu!?" Naruto whooped with joy. "Damn right, I'll keep up for sure, Itachi-niisan! Hah! I bet I can beat you there!"

"Language, Naruto. Anyways, we'll see about that, otouto."

With that, the two set off to an uncertain future.

xxxx

_"When brothers agree, no fortress is so strong as their common life." Antisthenes  
_

xxxx

After much deliberation (Did I get that right?), I decided to revamp the chapters of Black Lightning, as well as work on Chapter 11. I updated it with my latest style of writing, which is much different, mind you. -grin- 

**Vocabulary **

Hai - Yes

Hi no Kuni - Country of Fire ; Fire Country

(O)Niisan - Older brother

Oinin - Hunter-nin

Otouto - Younger brother


	2. Akatsuki's Training

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 1: Akatsuki Training

----

**Words:** 3,915** Reviews: **7 **Hits:** 283 **Favs: **2 **Alerts: **8

----

All hail the newly edited Chapter 1. I filled in a plot hole and slightly edited the Mizuki encounter.

* * *

1 year later… 

"Ne, Itachi nii-san? Where are we going again?" Itachi grinned. "We're going to the Akatsuki's base. Remember? I decided to join them a little while ago." Naruto nodded, but frowned. "Yeah, they were scary… Shark-face was funny though!" Itachi chuckled at this. "Me and shark-face, as you call him, will be teaching you. We'll also take you on missions to actually practice your skills in live combat."

Naruto bounded forward. "Well then, let's not dilly dally! Off we go!" The two set off at a faster pace, moving towards Stone country. In 3 days, they arrived at a mountain with a huge boulder sitting on it.

Itachi looked over the rock with his Sharingan, but found nothing.

"Nii-san, how do we get in?" Naruto asked.

Itachi rubbed his head. "Ah… I don't know. They only told me to meet them here…"

At this, Naruto deadpanned.

"Ah…you must be Itachi-kun and Naruto-kun…' said a voice behind them. Itachi whirled around to see a green, spiky-haired man with yellow eyes wearing a dark cloak embroidered with red clouds.

"You must be wondering how to enter, am I right?" He chuckled. "Well, the entrance _was_ sealed by me. You need to cancel it, like this."

The man went through hand seals at lightning speed. "Kai!" The rock suddenly disappeared into nothingness.

"I assume you've memorized the hand seals already, Itachi-kun. The rock was a physical genjutsu, pretty advanced stuff and I won't go into details right now."

The man stared at their faces, and then slapped his forehead.

"I haven't introduced myself, have I? So sorry, I am Amatsuyochi Yoshiki, leader of Akatsuki. You can call me simply Yoshi, or leader. "

Itachi raised an eyebrow, and Yoshiki noticed this.

"You must be wondering two things. Why is my name like that, and why am I so cheery, correct?" Itachi nodded silently.

"Well you see… I have one daughter, Masaki…" Itachi raised an eyebrow again.

"Yes, yes. I'll explain why we have similar names later. Anyway, she recently mastered a new technique that I taught her. Took me two times as long to master it when I was her age, so I'm quite proud. Eventually she'll become strong enough to take up that spare spot in Akatsuki I've been saving for her."

He continued. "I was given that particular name at birth because of my purity. I kill only those that deserve death; I judge only those that deserve judgment. Also, my daughter is pure as well and is to follow in my footsteps. A name like mine is only fitting for her."

Yoshiki turned his eyes to Naruto. "And now it seems she'll have a new friend!" Yoshi smiled and led them inside.

The two followed him through twists and turns and secret doorways until they reached a large door. Inside, they saw a large meeting room.

"Do make yourselves comfortable. The other five should be here shortly." As if he was psychic, the door opened and five men entered.

"I'll introduce you to your new comrades in Akatsuki, Itachi-kun. From the left to right, Sasori of the Sand, Deidara of the Stone, Kakuzu of the Waterfall, Kisame of the Mist, and Zetsu of the Grass. I myself am of the Cloud."

He turned to the other members. "And this is Itachi of the Leaf. Any questions?"

Kisame raised his hand. "Yes?" Kisame grinned, baring his teeth. "When do I start training the gaki?"

Naruto smirked. "Whenever you feel like you're ready to, shark-face." Kisame growled. "From now on, it's Kisame-san or Kisame-sensei. Got it?"

Naruto nodded his head vigorously. "Affirmative, shark- I mean… Kisame-sensei."

Yoshi chuckled. "You'd love to meet my daughter, Naruto. She may not be as active as you, but she sure as hell has as much stamina as you do. In a few years… she'll become more like you as well."

Itachi narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean? Are you going to…?" Yoshi's smile broadened.

"It is no wonder they call you the genius of a genius clan, Itachi-kun. Yes, we of Akatsuki will be capturing the 9 tailed bijuu and seal it in our members."

Itachi began to speak, but Yoshi interrupted him. "Once Naruto is strong enough, he too will join our ranks. There is no need to extract a demon that is already in a member."

Itachi sighed, relieved.

Yoshi turned to Naruto. "Naruto, you already know about yourself and your… _tenant_, am I correct?" Naruto nodded.

"Good, this makes things much less complicated." His eyes brightened as he turned to the door. "Masaki, come out and meet your new friend!"

A young girl peered around the door. She had silky green hair, and deep emerald eyes. Eyes that rivaled Naruto's own cerulean eyes in terms of bottomless. One could stare into either of their eyes and feel as if there was no end.

"H-Hi. I'm Amatsuyochi Masaki. Who are you?"

Smiling from ear to ear, he held out a hand. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you Masaki. I'm sure we'll become great friends!"

She smiled shyly as she shook his hand. "Yes… I think so too…"

"GWAH!" Naruto yelled out as Kisame picked him up. "Alright gaki, it's _training_ time!" Carrying Naruto, he and Itachi left the room.

"Masaki, you may go now. We have important things to discuss here." Yoshi said. She obeyed and left the room.

The remaining members stayed silent. "…What did you think of them?" Yoshi asked.

"A Sharingan user, yeah… he'll be helpful, yeah…" Deidara muttered. Sasori looked up. "When will he be initiated?"

"Probably in a month or two…" Kakuzu said. "Right, leader?" Yoshi grinned. "Absolutely. I believe he and Naruto-kun will be great additions to Akatsuki."

Zetsu finally spoke up. "He seems to be trustworthy enough to not backstab us…"

"Well if Zetsu says so, then I have to agree, yeah." Deidara said.

Yoshi clapped his hands. "Alright, now that we're done with that, here are your missions…"

* * *

Kisame dropped Naruto after entering another room, and turned to Itachi. "Itachi-san, what does the gaki know so far?" 

Itachi thought for a moment. "Advanced tree-climbing, advanced water-walking, plenty of Katon type jutsu, basic ANBU swordsmanship and taijutsu…" He paused. "That's about it."

Kisame grumbled. "He knows a lot for a little brat. I'll teach him more advanced chakra control, like ice walking and mountain climbing, as well as better swordsmanship and Suiton type jutsus."

Deidara happened to be passing by from the meeting when he overheard Kisame. "Oho, you guys are going to train him, yeah? I'll help so that I don't feel left out, yeah."

Kisame glared at him. "Naruto is going to be trained by me and Itachi."

Deidara chuckled. "I admit that normally you two would be enough, yeah, but I think the kid should be more versatile. I won't teach anything other than Doton type jutsus and the training that revolves around mastering them, yeah."

Yoshi had suddenly appeared next to Deidara. "Yes, one must be versatile. I'll teach the boy Fuuton and Raiton jutsus when the three of you aren't training him. Preferably on Mondays."

Kisame grumbled. "Whatever, it'll be better for the gaki anyways. I'll get him his own sword when he's 13."

Yoshi smiled. "Now begins the training of one who I hope becomes the strongest of Akatsuki."

* * *

The next day… 

"Alright, gaki! Rise and shine!" Kisame roared into Naruto's ear. Naruto shot up in panic and fell off the bed. Yelling out profanities, he picked himself up and dressed.

Kisame chuckled. "After breakfast, we begin your formal training."

Naruto stared dumbly at him. "You can cook?"

Kisame frowned. "Hell no. Everything I try to make is inedible. Deidara is making breakfast. I'd hate to admit it but his cooking is good."

"So you finally acknowledge it, yeah?" Deidara said as he slinked up behind Kisame.

"W-What are you talking about? Your cooking sucks!" Kisame sputtered out.

Deidara grinned. "I heard everything, yeah."

Kisame began muttering under his breath. "Whatever, let's eat!" he said loudly.

"What's for breakfast, Deidara-san?" Naruto asked politely.

"Ramen."

Kisame face vaulted. "RAMEN?"

Deidara gave a cheeky grin. "I've somehow developed a craving for it, yeah." He turned to Naruto, to find he was no longer there. In the distance, he heard a loud voice repeatedly yelling, "RAMEN!"

He sweatdropped, and immediately ran after Naruto. "You better leave some for me, yeah! Or you're going to pay, yeah!"

Kisame grumbled. "Him and his 'yeah'. It's so damned annoying."

* * *

After breakfast… 

"Gaki, today we will begin your training!" Kisame declared. "We will start with… weight training!"

Naruto did NOT like the look on Kisame's face, and tried to make a break for it. Unfortunately, he was caught before he reached the door. "Here, 15 pounds on each of your four limbs, and a 30 pounder around your body."

"Can't we use a gravity seal?" Naruto whined.

Kisame shook his head. "Nuh uh. One, you have to be used to normal weights first. Two, those things are expensive as hell and you're buying your own set."

"How do I buy one with no money?" Naruto demanded.

"You get some money by accompanying us on missions, gaki!" Kisame growled. "Depending on the frequency of accompaniment, it'll probably be 4 months, give or take one for you to save up enough."

"Cheapskate…" Naruto muttered.

"Enough crap talk. Go and run 20 laps around the forest outside the Akatsuki base!"

"H-Hai, shark- I mean… Kisame-sensei." Naruto mumbled before setting off.

Kisame glared at the boy. "When will he stop calling me shark-face on impulse?" he asked himself.

* * *

Naruto struggled to continue running, but with 90 extra pounds on, it was difficult. He panted as he continued his 3rd lap. '_At this rate, it'll be hours before I finish…_' "DAMN YOU SHARK-FACE!" 

Elsewhere, Kisame sneezed. '_He probably figured out it'll take hours before he finishes… heheh._'

* * *

3 hours later… 

Naruto stumbled back into the base, and attempted to strangle Kisame. He avoided the attempted murder and laughed. "Good job gaki. Now do 100 punches and 100 kicks to that training post over there. Left and right."

"Is that all?" Naruto asked.

Kisame grinned evilly. "Nope. After that, do 100 pushups, 100 jump ropes, 100 sit-ups, and 100 pull-ups. Oh, did I mention you must do these _while_ wearing your weights?" At this, Naruto fainted.

Kisame went through a few seals. "**Suiton: Teppodama**."

The watered down cannonballs splashed onto Naruto's face, waking him from his slumber.

"No time for rest, gaki! Once I'm done with you, you'll be so powerful that people will _know_ that I trained you as soon as they see you! Now go!"

"H-Hai…"

Naruto grudgingly spent the rest of his day on the exercises that Kisame had told him to do. He was completely drained of all stamina, and was too tired for dinner. As he lay in bed in his own room, his thoughts wandered.

'_Will this training kill me…? I hate shark-face…_' With these thoughts in mind, Uzumaki Naruto went to sleep.

* * *

1 week later… 

---Flashback---

"Alright, Naruto. Here are the mission specs. You are to enter Konoha and steal their Scroll of Secrets." Itachi explained.

"How would I accomplish that, Itachi nii-san?" Naruto asked curiously.

Itachi grinned. "This is the fun part. I'll put a high level genjutsu on you, as well as lots of blood. The Sandaime won't be fooled by the genjutsu, and once it's down he'll see the blood. He will ask what happened, and you'll tell him that you and I were attacked and that I was slaughtered."

Naruto cocked his head. "What will this do?"

"This is killing two birds with one stone. You will be in Konoha with the Sandaime's sympathy. You will be in a position to steal the scroll. Also, your story will get me off the active missing-nins list." Itachi smiled. "Just as my name suggest, I'm quite the sneaky one."

Naruto nodded his head. "I understand."

---End Flashback---

Naruto walked slowly through the streets of Konoha, after his short meeting with the Sandaime. Explaining how he had run away to brood on future plans and also because of the villagers' treatment toward him, Naruto had been forgiven by the ever kindly Sandaime. '_I'll wait until nighttime before I steal the scroll. But… won't old man Hokage be on to me?_

Naruto noticed a silver haired chuunin loitering around suspiciously, so he walked up to him. "You look suspicious!" he yelled.

The chuunin covered Naruto's mouth. "I'm a chuunin, kid. My name's Mizuki. I need some help with something, do you want to help me?"

'_Great, this guy will take all the blame off of me,_' Naruto thought eagerly.

"I need you to get me something called the Scroll of Secrets. With it, you and I can become really powerful. Do you agree?"

Naruto put on a show of being excited. "Awesome! I can't wait to be strong!"

Mizuki and Naruto grinned, both thinking the same thoughts. '_What a fool…_'

* * *

It was night, and Naruto sneakily snuck into the Hokage manor with the skill of a fox. He entered the basement, and spied a scroll with the words 'Scroll of Secrets' on it. '_Pft, what a bad defense._' 

He bypassed the scroll and looked at a small container scroll underneath a pile of scrolls. '_This must be it… just to make sure._' "Release!" he whispered. The scroll released the _real_ Scroll of Secrets. '_Alright, time to make my escape!_'

Naruto ran stealthily to the meeting spot that Mizuki had described. Since Mizuki was not yet there, he opened the scroll to the first page. '_Hmm… Kage Bunshin no Jutsu? That seems very useful…_' Naruto spent his time studying and practicing the technique until he had mastered it. '_Wasn't THAT hard… or maybe it's because of Kyuubi…_'

Suddenly Mizuki dropped in. "Wow, great job kid! I didn't really expect you to be able to get the scroll. Now, I'll kill you and take the scroll!"

Naruto smirked at the fool. "No, I believe you will be the one to die today, Mizuki. Itachi nii-san will take care of you."

Mizuki whirled around to come face to face with the man responsible for the Uchiha massacre. "U-U-Uchiha I-Itachi…" he whispered. He turned to run, but was halted by a kunai in the leg.

Itachi walked up to him. "You've been played for a fool by a mere child. Be glad that I will end your pitiful existence."

Mizuki whimpered something intangible before his throat was slit. Itachi turned to Naruto. "Come, otouto. I've already modified another chuunin's memory. Let's get out of here."

As they ran, Naruto noticed that Itachi held on to Mizuki's corpse. "Why bring that scum along, nii-san?"

"It is necessary for the plan. I convinced the chuunin through the Sharingan techniques that Mizuki stole the scroll, abducted you, and ran away leaving no traces. Your plan was brilliant, it left no blame on you." Itachi smirked. "As sly as a fox can get, eh Naruto?"

Naruto grinned. "And when I ever return, I can say that I killed Mizuki in his sleep or something like that."

"That excuse wouldn't work, but I'll think one up for you to use if you ever decide to return." Itachi said.

"Thanks, nii-san. Where would I ever be without you?"

Itachi grinned. "The depths of hell or the heights of heaven. Who knows?"

* * *

Meanwhile, the Sandaime had gotten the report by the chuunin. '_So… Naruto, how will you escape this situation? You are strong, and I know it. Mizuki can't keep you tied up forever. I hope to see you again before I die, and I fully believe you will escape._'

* * *

3 days later… 

Naruto and Itachi had returned to the base to receive congratulations.

Yoshi walked up to him. "Good job, Naruto-kun. Not only did you get us the scroll, but you also made it so you would be innocent. This makes our plans for the future that much easier, and I've decided to give you a present."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Really, Yoshi-san?"

Yoshi nodded. "It seems fitting as you did such a good job back there. Itachi tells me you mastered Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

Naruto nodded. "Good, here you go Naruto-kun."

"What about the scroll, Yoshi-san?"

Yoshi nodded. "Itachi already knows most of the contents of the scroll, as he was ANBU back in Konoha. The scroll is granted to ANBU and up, as you know. Itachi can teach you whatever was in the scroll. Don't mind that though, open your present."

Naruto unwrapped the gift and he gasped. "A gravity seal set! Brand new and high quality!" He looked up at Yoshi. "Arigatou gozaimasu, Yoshi-san!" Yoshi laughed. "Not a problem, Naruto-kun. Not a problem at all."

* * *

2 days later… 

Naruto had begun using his gravity seals, as well as even tougher training. "Alright gaki, this is where it all begins. You and Masaki will be going through advanced training to prepare you for your initiation into Akatsuki. Beware that the training will _truly_ be hell." Kisame warned him.

"I am ready for anything!" Naruto said as he stood fast.

Kisame smiled. '_Lots of spunk, I'm beginning to like the kid…_' He coughed. "Alright, now begins your _true_ training! Let's GO!" he roared.

* * *

Chapter 1 is done. Phew, at first it was 1000 words but now it's at 3000. I know the prologue was short, but that's how prologues are. I'm wondering if the names that I researched are correct. If they weren't would you kindly tell me what they really are? 

**Question and Answer **

** Will you be updating often? **Once a week.

**This is a romance story right? Will it be yaoi, het, or gen? **Hetero. I hate yaoi.

**Vocabulary **

Akatsuki – Dawn or Daybreak (Also translates to Red Moon)

Kai – Cancel

Arigatou gozaimasu – Thank you very much. (Formal)

_Amatsuyochi_**Yoshiki** – (_Heavenly World_) **Righteous Radiance **(I'm not exactly sure if the name is correct…)

_Amatsuyochi _**Masaki **– (_Heavenly World_) **Righteous Radiance** (Not sure as well, but Masaki is supposed to be the female version of Righteous Radiance.)

Bijuu – Demon

Gaki – brat

Katon – Fire

Suiton – Water

Doton – Earth

Fuuton – Wind

Raiton – Lightning

ANBU – **AN**satsu Senjutsu Tokushu **BU**tai (Special Assassination Tactical Force)

**Jutsu List**

**Suiton: Teppodama (Water Release: Gunshot)**** - C-Rank - The user uses water or converts their chakra into water, then condenses it into a high-density water ball. This ball of water can crush things on different levels depending on the chakra used, and moves at high velocity.  
**

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)**** - B-Rank - Unlike a normal Bunshin, the Kage Bunshin is solid. The user's chakra is evenly distributed amongst Kage Bunshins, and these clones can take and dish out damage like a normal being. The downside is that a solid hit will dispel the clone. Any experience gained by the clone during its existence is transferred to the user once they are dispelled, making Kage Bunshins a wonderful asset concerning spying and infiltration.**

**A/N:  
**

Thank you for your reviews, and I hope you guys stick around for Chapter 2: Return to Konoha.

Please Rate and Review! E-mail me any suggestions. Ja ne.


	3. His Return

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 2: Return to Konoha

----

**Words:** 7,186 **Reviews:** 21 **Hits:** 992 **Favs:** 10 **Alerts:** 18

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thought speech_"

"Speech"

All hail the newly edited Chapter 2. I've edited it to fill in small holes in the story, very minor.

* * *

4 years later… 

Naruto and Kisame trudged through a forest nearby Kirigakure no Sato.

"Kisame-san? Where are we going?" Naruto asked curiously.

Kisame grunted in agitation. "Before we send you to Konoha with Masaki, I need to get you your own unique sword, as I promised you.

The two Akatsuki members entered an indescript armory. "Geez, what's an armory doing in the middle of a forest?" Naruto complained.

Kisame quickly shut him up. "The sword smith here is legendary, he made the swords for the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. He doesn't like publicity though."

They waited for a bit before Kisame got impatient. "Oi, Takeshi-san!" A strong voice replied, "I'm here, I'm here!" A tough old man who looked about fifty years old entered the room. "What do you need, Kisame-kun?" "I need a zanbatou and two short chakra fangs!" He then thought for a bit. "Make them as you did for the Shinobigatana Nananin Shu !(Seven Swordsmen)" Kisame turned to Naruto. "The chakra fangs will be a trump card of yours. Store them on the seals that you have on your arms, one in each. You can use them any time you're in a fix by summoning them from your arms and out your sleeves. Understood?"

Naruto nodded. "Hai. I would also like to have the zanbatou be able to separate into 3 smaller parts though, each part having a different effect when imbued with chakra, if it isn't too much trouble."

Kisame nodded. "Did you hear that Takeshi?" he called to Takeshi, only to find him disappeared.

"Yeah!" said a voice in the back room. "Just wait about thirty minutes and I'll have them all done and ready for you."

In thirty minutes, Naruto had received his new swords as promised. He bit his thumb and swiftly wiped some blood on the seals that he had on either arm, and stored his chakra fangs. Strapping his zanbatou to his back, he turned to Kisame. "What now?"

Kisame frowned. "Use **Shunshin no Jutsu **to the Konoha gates and speak to the Hokage. I doubt he would recognize you in your current state, but just in case. If he asks, tell him you want to maintain low profile." He handed Naruto a folder. "Here is your new _identity_. You can wear your Akatsuki cloak if you prefer. I'll see you later, preferably during the Chuunin Exams." With that, Kisame disappeared. "Have I changed that much?" Naruto muttered aloud.

Indeed, his whisker marks had faded slightly, and he wore bandages around his cheek and nose (Think Kotetsu), covering the whiskers. He had grown slightly taller, what with leader forbidding an all-ramen diet. His body was lean and muscular, but not overly so, the result of years of training. His hair was just as gravity-defying as ever, and had grown slightly, his bangs covering his forehead because of its length.

Naruto did as Kisame had instructed, and found himself next to Masaki in the middle of a clearing. She was now 13, and had grown quite beautiful. Her flowing green hair was now waist-length, and she kept it in a ponytail. She wore her Akatsuki cloak just like Naruto.

Though he would never admit it, he had developed a crush on her.

She smiled sweetly when she saw his arrival. "You're done? Then let's go."

Naruto nodded. The two approached the gate. "Halt! Who goes there?" yelled the gate guards.

"We are foreign shinobi who wish to join the Leaf. Our previous village was destroyed by the Cloud." One of the guards landed next to them. "Passports, please." They handed them over, and the guard examined them and nodded. "Open the gates!" The guard escorted them to the Hokage's office, and then excused himself.

The Sandaime looked up from his paperwork. "Yes? Is there anything you need?" he asked.

"I am Hayai Takai, and this is my companion Amatsuyochi Masaki. We are here to become Konoha shinobi." He handed over their folders.

The Hokage quickly skimmed through them. "Understood."

Sandaime sat back and pondered for a bit. "Hmm… I'll put you two with a team that recently lost a member in their last mission. They're due to enter the Chuunin Exams."

Masaki raised an eyebrow. "Who are the current members? And why are both of us entering a team that has only lost one person?" The Hokage paused. "Team 7 has the greatest potential and the worst teamwork. I was hoping you two would be a sort of example to them. Hatake Kakashi is their jounin instructor. Team 7 includes Haruno Sakura and… Uchiha Sasuke."

At this, both Akatsuki members narrowed their eyes. "What is this _Uchiha_ like?" Naruto asked.

"Hrm… he is arrogant and broody. His goal is to kill a _certain_ someone." Sandaime muttered.

Naruto smiled grimly. "He is weak, then?"

The Hokage paused. "He is stronger than most genin, but he has no real motivation to become truly stronger. He lives only off of his hate." Naruto nodded. "He will stay weak unless he realizes what he truly strives to become stronger for."

The Sandaime Hokage nodded. "And what are _your_ purposes for obtaining strength, if I may so kindly ask?"

Naruto paused and chose his words carefully. "I train so that I may protect the people that are precious to me."

"A righteous reason," the Hokage agreed. He looked at the two shinobi that understood how to become truly strong. "Team 7 should be at Training Ground 7 right now. Give this letter..." he held out a folded piece of paper. "...To the silver-haired jounin named Kakashi when you see him. He has a tendency to be late, but he should be there about now."

Masaki and Naruto bowed, the blonde taking the letter. "Thank you for your hospitality, Hokage-sama!" they said in unison.

* * *

The two Akatsuki members happened to arrive at the same time Kakashi did. Naruto (Still known as Takai) walked up to him and handed Kakashi the letter. 

Kakashi read it over carefully, then looked up and motioned for them to follow him. He led them to Team 7. "Okay guys! Meet your new teammates, even if they're temporary. This is Hayai Takai and Amatsuyochi Masaki."

Sakura glared at them. "I don't know what Sandaime is thinking! They'll never be able replace Minoru. Besides, their names are weird too. What sort of parent calls their children 'Death' and 'Righteous Radiance'?" Sasuke was quite indifferent. "As long as they don't _hold me back_, I'm fine with them," he muttered softly.

Kakashi frowned at their rude behavior, and Naruto noticed. '_At least _he's_ hospitable…_' Kakashi turned to them. "So… do you guys have any, um, nicknames?"

Naruto and Masaki nodded. "I go by the name of Kurodenkei (Black Lightning). She goes by the name of Righteous Thunder." Sasuke scoffed. "What lousy-urk!" Both Naruto and Midori flickered and reappeared next to him, kunais at his neck. Kakashi made no motion to save him.

"There's a reason why we have nicknames… It's because we _earned_ them." Naruto growled darkly.

'_What speed… I didn't even see them move._' Sasuke thought.

"What do you think you're doing to Sasuke-kun?" Sakura screeched.

"I suggest you shut that pretty little mouth of yours before I silence them, _permanently!_" Masaki snarled.

"Oi, stop fighting. You're all on the same team now. I've signed you up for the Chuunin Exams. There is absolutely no need to start fighting already, especially with teammates. Fill out these papers and bring them to room 301 tomorrow at the Academy tomorrow before 4:00pm." Kakashi said before leaving.

Naruto and Masaki put their kunai away while Sakura shivered at Masaki's words.

Naruto glared at Sasuke. "Those who live off hate and anger… they are weak."

Sasuke whirled around. "What would you know? Bastard!"

"I know more than you think. Tell me, we heard the announcement of Uchiha Itachi's death when we were in Cloud. Do you really believe Itachi is dead?"

"No, he is too strong to be killed so easily. It was a mere distraction, getting Konoha off of his slimy back. And my hate makes me strong!" Sasuke yelled.

"You are weak because of your hate. I have become strong because of my will to protect my loved ones." Naruto said.

"LIAR! I am the strongest genin because of my hate!"

Masaki interrupted. "No… you are weak. You have already condemned yourself to weakness. The only way you can dig yourself out is to find someone precious to you and protect them with your bare hands if need be."

She turned to Sakura. "Tell me, what was this Minoru like?"

Sakura sighed. "He was an idiot and a dead last, but he had a good heart and would never abandon his friends no matter the situation. Well, he considered us friends but we treated him like trash. I never realized how much he meant to us until he died. Damn that Zabuza!"

Naruto and Masaki raised their eyebrows. '_Zabuza? Of the Seven Swordsmen?_' "He was strong, then." Masaki concluded.

"No…" Masaki turned to Sasuke. "He was weak. That's why he _died_."

"Strength is not measured on power alone, foolish one." Naruto said wisely.

"Strength… The strength of your heart, mind, and body. Though he may not have been strong in mind or body, the strength in his heart would be motivation enough to train. Train to the point where body and mind would be strengthened. He was _strong_." Masaki said icily.

Naruto picked up where she left off. "Unfortunately for you, Uchiha. You are merely strong in the body. Your mind and heart is not strong."

Sakura interrupted. "Sasuke's the smartest person I know!"

"Just as when I talked about strength, knowledge is not the only aspect of the mind. Wisdom, knowledge, and ideology, the three parts of the mind." Masaki smiled. "Sasuke only fits one part of the mind."

Naruto frowned. "Strength in body alone will not accomplish anything. Without the strength of the heart, you will never be truly strong. The heart is the driving force behind true strength."

Sasuke was about to speak up when Naruto stopped him.

"There are no weak soldiers under a valiant commander." Naruto said. "That was a quote from your Yondaime, and it rings true. Those with the heart to fight and protect that which is important to them, those that fight for the honor of their commander and their village, those who do not run from any enemy… no soldier is weak."

"I…" Sasuke was speechless. '_This guy… he speaks with authority and wisdom… Should I really trust his words?_'

"I'll think on your words… Takai." Sasuke mumbled out as he looked at the pavement.

Naruto nodded. "If you can change your ways, there is still hope."

The four shinobi suddenly noticed the setting sun. "It's pretty late… I'll see you guys at the Academy tomorrow." Naruto said. "Come Masaki, let's go."

* * *

Sasuke walked slowly to his home in the Uchiha district. 

'_There are no weak soldiers under a valiant commander…_ _How does shinobi from the Cloud know that quote?_' he pondered. '_Is what he said about true strength correct?_'

He frowned as his thoughts returned to the day of the massacre.

---Flashback---

"Right now… it would be worthless… to kill someone like you." Itachi said in a low voice. "My foolish brother, if you want to kill me… curse me! Hate me! Run away. Run away and live a long and unsightly life, and cling to your pitiful life. And someday, when you have the same 'eyes' as me… Come before me!"

---End Flashback---

Sasuke remembered. '_That's right… Itachi told me that hate would make me stronger… Was he lying? He was the strongest person I ever knew._'

Sasuke paused in the street.

_"It would be worthless to kill someone like you…_"

'_Could he have known I would hate him? Could this all have been some sort of sick test?_'

He began running to the Uchiha compound. '_Could it be… that he tested me when he killed the clan… tested my strength. My strength of the heart…_' He skidded in front of the gate and ran in. '_If I had vowed to protect my loved ones in the future, and strived for that goal… was that the test?_'

Sasuke stood in front of the family training dojo, reliving his memories.

"_Run away… Run away and live a long and unsightly life, and cling to your pitiful life…_"

Clenching his fists, his eyes angrily stared at the spot his parents had died.

"_There are no weak soldiers under a valiant commander. Those who do not run from any enemy… they are strong._"

'_So that was it… he tested my strength of the heart just like Takai berated me for today. If I had run away, then I was weak. If I had begun hating him all my life as he told me to, then I was weak._'

"_It would be worthless… to kill someone like you…_"

'_Worthless. Would it have been truly worthless to kill me? Could he have seen the potential in me to become stronger than him… could he have left me alive, knowing that if I realized what 'true strength' was, that I could kill him?_'

He walked outside when rain began pouring from the sky. Sasuke looked up at the sky and muttered, "The rain cries for my stupidity…"

* * *

Sakura slowly walked home from the incident with Takai and Masaki. 

"_Strength… the strength of your heart, mind, and body…_" Takai's words came to her.

'_If that's what strength is, then I'm afraid that I'm weak… I had knowledge, but that was only part of the mind's strength. I have no body, and my strength of the heart… I was too afraid for my own life to actually make a stand for my friends…_'

Sakura became dejected as she slowed down.

"_If you can change your ways, there is still hope._"

'_There is still hope…_' Sakura brightened slightly. _'Who are my loved ones? My family and friends… and Sasuke… they are all important to me. If I fought to protect them, and trained to be able to protect them, would I become strong?_' She clenched her fist in determination. '_I WILL become strong!_'

She started walking again as she remembered other thoughts during the verbal fight.

"_There are no weak soldiers under a valiant commander…_"

'_It's true… Kakashi-sensei, he always brought out the best in us during battle. With his encouragement and vow to protect us… he made us stronger in a sense._ _If that can be described as strength, then I will move towards it, no matter the cost!_'

Determined, she ran the rest of the distance home. '_After the Chuunin Exams… I'll find someone who will train me… train me so I can protect those whom I love!_'

* * *

Naruto walked slowly with Masaki. "I think I went overboard back there," he muttered. 

Masaki shook her head. "No… you showed him his place. You actually did him a favor, explaining what real strength was."

He sighed. "I shouldn't have gotten so emotional."

"We all have our moments," said Masaki.

"I acted like a completely different person out there." Naruto sighed.

"You act like a different person whenever you're away from the Akatsuki base!" Masaki grumbled. "Do we even have a place to stay?"

Naruto grinned. "Of course! Why go unprepared? The Hokage had keys and an address in the letter, which I took out when you weren't looking."

She frowned. "Why hide it?"

Naruto laughed uncomfortably. "I was going to pretend we didn't have a two bedroom apartment, but I was in too foul a mood after that verbal war."

She glared at him. "You were going to _prank_ me?"

"Heheh… I guess…" Naruto forced a smile.

BONK! "Gah!"

"What was that for, Masaki?" Naruto complained as he rubbed his head caringly.

"You admitted that you were thinking of pranking me. That alone deserves punishment." She said lightly.

Naruto sighed in annoyance. "Whatever. Let's just get to the apartment, and go to sleep."

"What, no ramen?" Masaki joked.

"Maybe tomorrow. Ramen may be an any time meal, but I just don't feel like it right now." He said.

They walked in silence to the apartment and Naruto walked up several sets of stairs before entering a key into the hole. He stepped inside to see a moderately sized apartment, for two people. Satisfied, he went to his own room and went to sleep. Masaki went to her own room as well, but did not go to sleep immediately. Her mind wandered to the first few weeks when Naruto had arrived…

---Flashback---

"Otousan? You said that new people were coming. Where are they?" a 9-year-old Masaki asked.

"Patience, Masaki. It takes a while to get from Konoha to here." Yoshi smiled kindly. "I'll go out and fetch them. You wait here while I do so, Masaki." She nodded as she watched her father leave the room. For what seemed like an eternity, she waited. Sighing, she began poking a painting of the Kyuubi that had caught her eye.

When she suddenly heard the entrance opening, she scurried to a hiding place and heard several people conversing outside. Her father, an unknown man and an unknown child walked in. She followed them to the Akatsuki meeting room, where she waited outside. She knew that her father knew she was following them, and merely waited for him to ask her to appear.

Masaki, not one to be impolite, greeted each of the Akatsuki members as they came by. Sasori, Kakuzu, and Zetsu spoke nothing as they passed by. Deidara smiled at her before entering, and Kisame got a weird look in his eye, forcing Masaki to run around the corner before returning to the door.

She heard her father introducing the members of Akatsuki, and then calling her inside. She cautiously peered around the door to see the newcomers looking at her. The younger one was around her age and had striking spiky blonde hair and cerulean eyes. '_His eyes… they are so pretty._' She thought. She and the blonde, whose name was Uzumaki Naruto, greeted each other.

'_I hope he's nice like Otousan…_' she thought to herself.

She watched the funny sight of Kisame carrying a flailing Naruto under his arm and exiting the room with the Itachi.

"Masaki, you may go now. We have important things to discuss here." Her father told her. Being the obedient daughter she was, she left the room and went to her own bedroom to go to sleep.

---End Flashback---

Masaki smiled. That was how she had met her only friend that was in her age bracket. He was fun to be around with. He may have been loud and obnoxious, but he did it in a good-natured way. He was always nice to her and her father, and obnoxious to Kisame.

'_And there were those times I caught him staring at me… Heh._ _We had so much fun back then, even with constant training. He would always find time to prank Kisame, and it irked Kisame to no end that he could never avoid them…_'

She grinned to herself as she closed her eyes and began falling asleep.

'_Tomorrow… the Chuunin Exams… the time to prove ourselves has come. Let us show Konoha what we're made of!_'

* * *

Chapter 2 is done. Because of Sahagiel, I strived to make the chapter more descriptive and stuff. It took me a while to make up the true strength thing. Now it's time for the review replies. 

**Question and Answer**

**What are the true plans of Akatsuki? **You'll find out later.

**Is Naruto going to be evil/dark? **He'll be stronger than the norm, but he'll have essentially the same personality, just slightly modified.

**Were you trying to make everyone OoC?** Uh, no.

**Will Naruto go back to Konoha and meet Team 7? **Yes, if only for a bit.**  
**

**Vocabulary**

Shinobi – Ninja

Kirigakure no Sato – Hidden Village of the Mist

Otousan – Father

Takeshi – Brave (m)

**Hayai** _Takai_ – **Swift**_ Death_

**Jutsu List  
**

**Shunshin no Jutsu ****(Body Flicker Technique) - D-Rank - The user uses chakra to activate the body, moving from one point to another in the blink of an eye. This jutsu can be modified for long range use, much like the way Kakashi uses it to teleport to different places around Konoha.  
**

**A/N:  
**

Watch for Chapter 3: Chuunin Exams, soon. Rate and review the latest chapter. Ja ne!


	4. Chance Meeting

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 3: Chuunin Exams Part 1

----

**Words:** 16,897 **Reviews: **23 **Hits:** 2473 **Favs: **17 **Alerts:** 39

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thought speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

All hail the slightly but newly edited Chapter 3. I included Kakashi in this, though only momentarily, it keeps him from disappearing altogether. Note: I edited Shoushen Raiton no Jutsu, because of Kishimoto's new elemental advantage stuff.

* * *

The next day… 

It was mid afternoon, and Naruto waited patiently outside the Academy, leaning against a fence. He looked up at the clear blue sky and the birds that flew in it.

'_To be free like them… what I would give for that…_' Naruto frowned. '_It's got to be 2:00pm already. Where are the others?_'

Bored, he looked at the incoming stream of participants. Most of them looked unworthy of the Chuunin status.

'_The strong ones are the quiet ones… the weak are loudmouthed. Funny, I think if I stayed here instead of leaving, I would've been a loudmouth…_' Naruto thought to himself.

He turned his attention back to the sky, watching clouds slowly enter his vision. Fascinated with them, he continued to stare at the clouds until…

"What are you doing?" Masaki asked as she arrived at the Academy.

Naruto scowled. "You're horribly late. I've had nothing to do except look at the clouds."

"I was gathering intelligence on the city. Can't blame me if I wanted to prepare beforehand." Masaki waved him off as she leaned against the fence.

Naruto's scowl deepened. '_To think she used to be a helpless little girl back then…_'

Masaki sighed after half an hour, as she understood how Naruto felt about waiting. "I'll be waiting inside for you." She got up from the fence. "If the others don't show, then leave them behind." She left the fence and entered the large Academy doors.

Naruto grumbled to himself a little bit before settling down again. '_Where the hell are they?_' he asked himself. He took in his surroundings more carefully. Lush green trees bordered the path leading to the Academy, and made some sort of leafy wall around the entire building. The swings caught his eye, and he smiled sadly.

'_I remember… I used to sit on that swing, because no one else would play with me…_'

His smile gained some happiness as he shuffled through his old memories.

---Flashback---

It had been 2 months since his arrival at the Akatsuki base, and Naruto made it his mission to annoy Kisame as much as humanly possible. At this time, Kisame was walking down the hall and eating some soup when Naruto ran behind him and pushed him. "Tag, you're it!" yelled 9-year-old Naruto.

Kisame stumbled as his soup went flying into his face. He slowly pulled off the bowl and gave a deadly glare to Naruto. "Why you little! When I get my hands on you!" Kisame yelled hotly as Naruto ran down the hall. Kisame immediately set after him, his larger strides allowing him to catch up.

Naruto grinned when he saw Kisame reach for his shirt. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" he cried. A clone appeared right next to Kisame, causing him to trip and barrel over the floor and into a wall.

Sasori happened to be watching the exchange and shook his head in disbelief. "What a fool…" he muttered under his breath, before walking off to his room.

"I heard that, puppet freak!" Kisame roared. "Yeah, run away and tinker over your stupid little _dolls_!" Immediately Sasori was in front of him. Kisame gulped nervously. "Uh… I… um…" Sasori got a deadly look in his eye, and marched menacingly forward, causing Kisame to back up.

"Never… EVER… make fun of my puppets…" he said in a deadly tone. He walked up to Kisame slowly until Kisame hit a wall. "The next time I hear you talking crap about my puppets, you'll wish you were never a man."

Threat sent, Sasori turned around and silently walked to his own bedroom.

'_Geez, obsessive much?_' Kisame thought. He turned to go but was tripped over by two Naruto clones. "DAMN BRAT! I'LL GET YOU!" he howled.

---End Flashback---

'_Ah… those were good times…_' Naruto looked up to see two approaching figures. '_I'll relive the rest of my memories later, looks like my two idiots of teammates have finally arrived._'

Naruto grunted and pushed himself off the fence. "What took you idiots so long? I've been waiting here for _hours_." He scowled at them. "And don't give me any crap excuses."

Sakura frowned. "I overslept after reading too many books during the night…"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What kind of books?"

"Medical ninjutsu and genjutsu…" she replied.

Naruto turned to Sasuke. "And you. What's _your_ excuse?"

Sasuke frowned. "I was thinking on your words Takai, just like I said I would." He sighed. "I think I understand what you meant."

Naruto nodded. "I'm glad that you've seen the light. Even if it is… orange…"

"Huh?" Sakura stared at him with a confused look.

"What? Orange is only _THE _best color in the entire world." Naruto told her.

Sakura and Sasuke stared at him with disbelieving looks. "You have got to be kidding me…" Sakura choked out. "Orange? That's a hideous color!"

Naruto held up a hand to silence them. "We'll talk about how orange is so awesome later, let's go or we'll be late."

'_Awesome? It's ugly…_' Sasuke and Sakura thought.

The three shinobi turned to enter the doors of the Academy. Naruto smirked.

'_This place hasn't changed since I left… how typical._' Naruto thought.

Walking down the hall, they passed by several rooms that had classes going on. Naruto's smirk turned into a full grin as he laughed silently in his head.

'_These kids… they have no idea what being a shinobi truly is..._'

Walking up a set of stairs, they turned the corner and saw a great many people piled up at a door with the sign '301' above it. Naruto held up a hand to halt his teammates. He gestured for them to come closer. "You guys have noticed it, I suppose?" he whispered to them.

Sasuke and Sakura nodded. "Don't mention it out loud. It seems that the Chuunin are weeding out the idiots. Just walk past and follow my lead."

They separated from the huddle and sneaked past the large group of people. His eyes met with lavender pupils. '_Hyuuga…_' Naruto sneered. Sasuke and Sakura followed his lead and went to the end of the room. Turning, he scanned the wall until he found what he wanted. He stepped through the wall, his team following him through the wall.

Team 7 walked up another set of stairs and emerged onto the 3rd floor. Masaki tapped her foot impatiently as the other three members took their time to walk over to her.

"Impatient much?" Sasuke asked. Masaki growled. "You would be too if you were waiting for over an hour in a _deserted_ hallway!" The now united Team 7 turned to walk when a voice stopped them.

"Matte!" Team 7 turned around to see the Hyuuga and his team on the other side of the hall. The Hyuuga stared at them. "What are your names?"

Naruto smirked. "I see no need to reveal my name to someone who does not reveal theirs."

"How old are you? Are you rookies?" demanded the Hyuuga.

"I have no obligation to answer any of those questions." Naruto replied.

One of the Hyuuga's teammates bounded up to him. "Hello, my name is Rock Lee. May I know yours?"

Naruto stared at him. His eyes moved back and forth from the thick eyebrows to the green bodysuit. "Uh… I'm Takai… Hayai Takai." Naruto mumbled as he continued to stare at the weird boy.

"Okay! You look strong, Takai. May we spar once before we enter the examination room?" Rock Lee asked him.

Naruto turned to his teammates, his eyes asking for an answer.

"Go ahead." Sasuke said.

"Don't over do it, idiot…" muttered Masaki.

"It's your life, make your own decisions…" Sakura sighed.

Naruto smiled and turned back to Lee. "I'll be much obliged." He led Lee forward and down a set of stairs to a large clearing. "We can spar here… just don't go overboard, alright Lee-san?"

Lee nodded. "I'll try my best. I hope to be enlightened after this match." He then settled into a style that Naruto had seen once.

'_Where did I see that before… Oh yeah! There was a guy that looked just like him. What was his name? Gah? Gay? Gai? Yes, it was Gai. He was a taijutsu specialist whose specialization was bone crushing…_'

"I do believe that style is called… the 'Bone Crushing' style?" Naruto asked.

Lee nodded. "Yes… how did you know?"

Naruto waved his hand to settle the matter. "I met a man named Gai once who used the same stance. That's all."

Lee's eyes ignited. "Ooh! You have met Gai-sensei?"

Naruto sighed. "Yes, yes, now let's get on with the match."

Naruto settled into his own stance. He moved out his left arm and moved his right arm into a 90-degree angle parallel to the ground. He let both of his hands' fingers stretch out in a relaxed position.

Lee frowned. "Hmm? I do not recognize that stance… I do believe this will be a challenge. May the one with the most FIRES OF THE YOUTH win!" Lee roared.

Naruto sweatdropped. '_Sheesh, this guy's just as weird as Gai…_'

Neither Naruto nor Lee moved a muscle. For several minutes, they stared at each other, waiting for a move…

"JUST GOD DAMN FIGHT ALREADY!" Masaki roared.

Naruto sweatdropped. "Alright, geez. No need to get impatient…" he muttered. Naruto began swaying back and forth, for a few seconds. Suddenly, as he finished swaying back, he rushed forward with his fingers outstretched.

"**Konoha Daisenpuu!**" Lee made to intercept him, but Naruto merely ducked and held out his left arm. Lee's first kick swung over his head, and his second kick made contact with his arm. Sensing opportunity, Naruto grabbed Lee's leg before he could respond and began swinging him.

After 3 turns, Naruto threw Lee at the wall with all his might. Lee curled up into a ball to reduce some of the damage, but he still made a large indent on the wall. As he slowly got up, Naruto rushed at him again without interference.

Charging chakra into his fingers, he began performing a style similar to Jyuuken in which the user used chakra from their fingers to inflict damage. In this case, Naruto made his fingers stronger. This was actually an advantage from using a chakra charged fist because there was less energy use when charging up your fingers with the same amount of damage, as well as it being harder to dodge than a fist.

He twirled once, avoiding Lee's sloppy punch, and slammed two fingers into the opposing arm. Lee winced in pain, and attempted to fight back. He threw another punch followed by a kick at Naruto.

Naruto ducked under the punch, charged his feet with chakra and back-flipped over the kick, knocking Lee under the chin in the process. Lee flew up from the chakra-enhanced hit, and Naruto soon jumped after him. Lee flew in the air, face facing downwards, and Naruto appeared under him. Naruto put two fingers on his neck and muttered "Checkmate."

Grabbing Lee, he flipped and landed safely on the ground. Lee slowly got up from his injuries, and smiled at him. "That was a most interesting spar, Takai! I hope one day to be able to defeat you and that dangerous style of yours! I vow on it with my shinobi honor!" he announced.

Naruto grinned. "In your dreams, Lee-san. In your dreams…" he told him before walking up the stairs to join his teammates, even if they were only temporary. "C'mon, let's go before we're too late."

Team 7 walked up to Room 301 to find none other than Hatake Kakashi leaning next to the door. "Well now, just as I expected, you all showed up. I would say something else, but I wouldn't want to ruin those confident faces of yours. Good luck." With that, he gestured to the door and closed his only visible eye. The four genin (Two of which are S-Class) slowly opened the door. Entering, Naruto eyed the 150 or so shinobi in the room. They glared at him, and he glared back. A high-pitched scream interrupted the glare war.

"Sasuke-kun! It's been forever since I last saw you!" she squealed as she hung on to his arm. "And… uh, where's Minoru? Who are those two?" she asked in confusion.

Sasuke looked away. "Minoru's dead. They are his replacements, Hayai Takai and Amatsuyochi Masaki. They are… strong." Sasuke mumbled in annoyance.

Ino was shocked. "Minoru? Dead?" she looked at Naruto and Masaki. "Their names are weird…"

Sakura put a hand over Ino's mouth. "Shut it, Ino-pig! They have weird names but they are also very _strong_!" she whispered fiercely. "They're also temperamental!"

"Man, this is so… troublesome." Shikamaru muttered. "I don't really feel like taking the Exam…" He sighed as he stared at the ceiling. "Minoru's dead, huh? He was a good guy…"

Chouji nodded, potato chips in hand. "He was a prankster and an idiot, but he was a good-hearted idiot…" Chouji put a comforting hand on Shikamaru's shoulder. "He's probably in a better place, Shikamaru."

Shikamaru sighed heavily. "Yeah, I suppose," he muttered dejectedly. "He was one of our few friends."

Naruto smiled sympathetically. "What's done is done. The only thing to do is to move on for the sake of your friend." He said wisely.

"What's a dumb blonde like you pretending to be wise for?" said an obnoxious voice from behind.

"Say WHAT?" yelled Ino. She began struggling against Sakura's grip. "Let me at that dog boy! He'll regret ever making fun of blondes!" she screeched. Naruto put his hands on his face in embarrassment. "Please shut up everyone," he mumbled.

"Why should we, idiot?" roared the obnoxious boy. Naruto slowly turned around to face the intruder. He had short shaggy dark-brown hair with a gray jacket with the hood up. A small white puppy was nestled in his jacket.

"Because…" Naruto hissed. "You're pissing off the other people, big time, dobe!"

Kiba slowly turned around to see the majority of the people glaring daggers at him. Gathering his courage, he shouted, "I don't care what you weaklings think, I'll pass and become a Chuunin!" He stiffened when he felt the cool metal of a kunai on his neck. He turned to see that the owner was an angry Naruto.

"When I tell you to shut up, you. SHUT. UP." He whispered fiercely. He pocketed his kunai and stalked off to a corner.

"Umm… K-Kiba-kun… you shouldn't be s-so loud…" mumbled Hinata.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. '_I never knew that a Hyuuga existed that had confidence problems…_'

Shino walked up with the rest of his team. "She's right, Kiba. Speak out of place and the test takers WILL take it out on you…"

Sakura sighed. "Well, 8 of the Rookie 9 are here. It's just not the same without Minoru."

Ino nodded. "He was obnoxious, but he was always so kind and caring…"

"Enough!" The 8 rookies turned to Masaki. "He's dead, and he's not coming back. It's useless to waste all your time mourning over someone you didn't treat as an equal. If you really care about him, then train so that you can protect the rest of your friends!"

"Why you…" Ino growled.

"Ino! Stop…" Sasuke muttered to her. "She's right. If you don't want to experience more loss, then you should train so you can protect them. If it's one thing that those two taught me, it's that you should protect those that are close to you at all cost." Sasuke clenched his fists. "I learned that lesson the hard way."

Naruto laughed lightly. "Yeah, I suppose you did, with me chewing you out and all."

"Hey… you guys should keep it down," muttered a voice behind them. Naruto and Masaki turned, and their eyes widened.

'_Kabuto…!_' they thought. '_Sasori's spy… Recently Sasori's been receiving the wrong information. Either Orochimaru is feeding Kabuto the wrong information, or Kabuto's turned on us…_'

"Hello, Kabuto…" Naruto said while forcing a grin. "It's been a while."

Kabuto's eyes widened. "Na-What are you doing here?"

Naruto walked up to Kabuto. "That's for you to find out, spy… Prove to me that you're ours and not Orochimaru's." Naruto whispered in his ear. Kabuto's struggled to retain a gasp. "O-Orochimaru is going to attack during the Chuunin Exams… that's all he's revealed to me so far, Naruto-san…"

Naruto gave him a deadly look. "It would do well to not call me by my real name, Kabuto. I'm going by the name of Takai. I will take that information, but if you don't start relaying good information, you will find me your enemy…" he whispered icily as he revealed a hidden kunai.

Kabuto shivered and nodded. "Hai… Takai-san…" he mumbled. "One more thing…" Naruto muttered. "Hand me the nin-info card on me and Masaki."

Kabuto obeyed and handed him two cards. Naruto stared at them awhile, and charged some chakra into them. He returned them, but not before he told Kabuto what he'd done. "I just… modified them a little. Don't forget to flaunt them to the rookies…" he growled the last part out.

"H-Hai…" Kabuto fixed his glasses and looked to the rookies. "Hey, you guys! You're rookies right? Come over here." The rookies did so and gathered around him. "I can tell you're rookies by the clueless looks on your faces. I'll share some info with you guys on the participants of the exam."

"Who are you?" Kiba asked.

"I'm Yakushi Kabuto. Pleasure to meet you."

Sakura looked interested. "Kabuto-san, this is your second time, right?"

Kabuto shook his head. "No, this is my seventh. I'm on my fourth year." Everyone gasped. "There are some advantages though. I've gathered a huge amount of information on these nin-info cards." Kabuto revealed his prized possessions.

"All I need are names and a country to find the person. Be warned, as some people aren't as detailed as others." Kabuto told each of them.

"Hayai Takai of Konoha, and Amatsuyochi Masaki of Konoha." Sasuke said immediately.

If he had looked at Naruto, he would have seen the deadly grin that was plastered on his face.

Kabuto nodded. "Alright, Hayai Takai. Mission history: None, seeing as he just joined. Let's see… skills… all of his skills are below average." Kabuto looked at Masaki's card. "Same with Masaki as well."

"Hah! See, forehead-girl? I told you they were no problem!" Ino laughed.

"No… those cards are wrong." Sasuke growled. '_How did he flicker behind me fast enough so that I couldn't react? How did he easily defeat a taijutsu specialist?_' "Your cards are _crap_." Kabuto fixed his glasses. He glared at Sasuke. "It can't be helped, the information is what's been recorded. He's probably trained since last time." Kabuto glanced at Naruto.

Naruto gave a nod. Receiving the go, he continued. "Besides, he's recently transferred from Kumo and I don't have that much information…"

Before he could go on, a flash of smoke from the other side of the room distracted them. "Alright, maggots! I'm Morino Ibiki and I will be the proctor for the first exam! He gave them a dangerous grin. "Come up here and pick a number from the box. That number is where you sit."

All the shinobi picked their cards and went to their spots. Naruto looked at his card, and it read '96'. He walked over to the chair to find someone in it. Sweat dropping, he turned the card upside down so that it read '69'. Mistake cleared, he walked over to the correct seat and plopped himself down.

"Nice sword…" someone next to him muttered. He turned to see a strange girl. She had silver hair, sort of like Kakashi's, and had deep amethyst eyes. She wore her Leaf headband on her arm. She had on a red short shirt that revealed her stomach and long green cargo pants.

His eyes wandered to the strange markings on her stomach. '_If I didn't know any better, I would've thought it was just a tattoo…_' he thought. '_I'm smarter than that now… so there's a jinchuuriki in the Exams? I'll have to capture her and bring her to leader…_'

"Umm… it's impolite to stare you know…" she mumbled. Naruto's eyes snapped up. "Ah sorry, your… _seal_… is interesting… What's your name?" Naruto asked the girl. '_I'll have to tail her during the next exam._'

"Ah… I'm Ryoku Kaoru… What's yours? And how do you know if it's not a tattoo?"

"I'm Hayai Takai… and I _know_ that it's a seal. I have one myself. There are bad men that are out to get people like you and me, Kaoru. We demon containers should stick together…" he whispered under his breath.

"Really?" she asked. She began thinking to herself. '_Aw damn, there are people after me? Do they want to kill me? Do they want my demon? What do they want? It'll be safer if I stay with this guy, since he's a container and he's strong as well…_'

"Well, let's try to find each other during the next exam… do you think they'll be in the exams?" she asked half curious half afraid.

Naruto nodded. "They're _everywhere._ It would do no good to be picked off one by one, would it?" As he talked, Naruto smirked to himself. '_Too easy… she won't be expecting me to turn on her…_'

She gave him a serious look. "Can I see your seal to make sure that you're a container?" Kaoru asked him.

Naruto sweatdropped. "Ah… ok." He zipped off his cloak to reveal heavy ANBU armor, courtesy of Uchiha Itachi. He lifted up the armor and muscle shirt to reveal his intricate seal. Her mouth was gaping. "That's some serious seal you have there, Takai." Naruto nodded as he zipped up his cloak. "You need a strong seal for a strong demon." He explained to her. He gave her a look and asked, "By the way, what demon do you have in you?"

She paused. "I have the Nibi. What demon do _you _have?" she asked back.

Naruto grinned. "I have the Kyuubi." Kaoru's eyes widened. "Kyuubi? _THE_ Kyuubi?" she asked in amazement. "Yep, _the_ Kyuubi, lord of demons." Naruto's attention turned to Ibiki. "Look's like he's reciting the rules, we'd better pay attention." With that, the conversation ended.

Naruto turned to Ibiki, but tuned him out. Instead, his memories wandered once again backwards…

---Flashback---

"Ne, Masaki. Let's go prank Kisame!" Naruto had wandered around, bored as hell until he met up with Masaki.

"Ah… I don't know, Kisame-san can get scary when he's mad…' she mumbled.

Naruto pouted. "Don't worry about that! I won't let him get you."

She looked him in the eye. "If you say so…" With that, the two began making plans for the _ultimate _prank, ever. For an hour, the two sat on the floor, drawing an intricate trap. Once finished, Naruto ran off to grab supplies while Masaki went to talk to Deidara.

She soon found the Akatsuki member in the kitchen, deciding what to make for lunch. Deidara noticed Masaki and walked over to her. "Yes? Is there anything you need, Masaki-chan, yeah?" Deidara asked as he knelt down.

"Ah… Kisame-san isn't up yet, but I heard that his favorite dish is stewed shark…" Deidara frowned. "Where did you hear that, yeah?" he asked. "Kisame-san told me one day when he drank too much…" she mumbled. "I was thinking that maybe you could _impress_ Kisame-san with your cooking…"

Deidara suddenly got stars in his eyes. "Okay! Stewed shark it is, yeah!" He immediately began getting to work, while Masaki smiled.

'_Deidara-san is nicer than the others… he strives to get his cooking acknowledged, but he's really sensitive about his… art…_' Masaki ran off to find a dirty Naruto. "Mission accomplished!" they exclaimed at the same time.

Naruto chuckled. "Boy, Kisame and Deidara will be out for my hide once they find out what we did…"

Masaki cocked her head. "_Your_ hide? I won't get in trouble?"

Naruto shook his head. "Of course not! I'll tell them it was all my idea, and that way it'll be even more fun to run away from them!" he smiled widely. His eyes widened as he heard a door open. "Quick, hide!" he whispered fiercely. He ran into the hall.

"Hey, shark-face! Catch!" Naruto roared. "DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Kisame yelled as he caught the object. '_Huh, a mirror…_' Naruto snickered. "Why don't you look at yourself in the mirror? Kisame looked confused. '_Look at myself?_' He did look in the mirror and his jaw dropped open. "BRAT! HOW DARE YOU DRAW ALL OVER MY FACE!" roared Kisame. He made to run at Naruto, but slipped on the oil that was on the hallway.

"Gah!" he yelped out before he went sliding across the floor, across the room, and across the kitchen till he ran into a barrel of syrup, causing it to tip over and spill on him. "Guh!" As he struggled to get up, he tried to find something to grab on and pulled on a string. Immediately, a large bag of flour opened up and emptied its contents onto him.

Kisame silently got up, and began marching over to Naruto. "Kisame-saaan!" Deidara sang out. "I've got something for you, yeah!" Deidara walked over to Kisame and intercepted him, but unfortunately slipped on the leftover oil. The pot he was holding flew into the air and landed on Kisame.

Kisame attempted to pull it off, but paused. He sniffed the contents and in a muffled voice, asked "Deidara? What kind of stew is this?"

Deidara smiled. "Why. It's your favorite."

Kisame pulled off the pot. "It is?" He began tasting it. "It's good… but it doesn't really taste like chicken noodle soup…" Deidara sweatdropped. "You mean… _that's_ your favorite, yeah?" he asked slowly.

Kisame stared at Deidara. "Yeah, what of it?"

Deidara began to sweat profusely. "Ah, you see. Masaki-chan told me your favorite was… um… stewed shark…"

At this, Kisame's eyes bugged out as he began hyperventilating.

A loud scream rang through the entire Akatsuki compound. Itachi immediately appeared on the scene. "What's wrong? What happened? Why is he unconscious?" he demanded.

Deidara smiled nervously. "Uh… I made him stewed shark, yeah…" Itachi stared in disbelief, then started rubbing his head. "So annoying…" he muttered before walking away.

---End Flashback---

'_Yeah, that was THE ultimate prank. Kisame wouldn't touch anything Deidara made for a month, heheh._' Naruto smiled. '_I also remember Kisame attempting to get back at me with his Samehada, except it was a massive water balloon henge'd into Samehada, complete with explosive tag… Boy, was he ever surprised when his Samehada exploded and splashed water all over his face, heheh!_'

Naruto closed his eyes for a moment. He opened them again to find himself in front of the Kyuubi's cage.

He sighed. "What is it, baka fox?"

"**Geez, after all this time you still don't like me? I'm hurt!**"

Naruto glared. "Just tell me what you want to tell me."

"**Alright, alright. You know the Nibi girl next to you? I suggest you put a tracking jutsu on her before the next exam… I'll teach you the jutsu here and you can use it out there.**"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What's with the sudden need to help me out?

Kyuubi huffed. "**It's for my own benefit. Nibi is a stinking filthy good for nothing backstabber, and I do NOT like her. **

Naruto chuckled. "All in due time, my good friend. All in due time…" He closed his eyes, and reopened them to once again see the examination room. Naruto concentrated and sent Masaki a message via telepathic jutsu.

"_Neh, Masaki. The jinchuuriki of the Nibi is right next to me. She has silver hair, amethyst eyes. See her?_"

"_Yeah I see her. What, you want to abduct her during the exams?_"

"_Aw but Masaki, we both know that Itachi and Kisame are on standby outside Konoha. We could have them pick her up!_" he whined.

"_Whatever, we'll get her in the next exam. Just don't get beat…_"

Naruto mentally scoffed. "_An Akatsuki jinchuuriki get beat? Che!_"

Masaki mentally sighed and cut the telepathic link. Naruto blinked at the sudden loss of communication and grumbled to himself. He gave his Akatsuki ring, Haku, a loving look, before performing the jutsu.

"Alright, the tenth question will now be revealed!" Ibiki announced to the examinees.

Naruto blinked and looked at his blank test paper. '_Ah… screw it. That Ibiki guy says the tenth question is worth 10 points, so it doesn't really matter…_' Naruto sat back and fell asleep. He was in the middle of dreaming that he was all-powerful when Masaki initiated telepathic communication again.

"_Baka! Wake up! We passed the first exam._"

Naruto got up groggily. "_How'd we pass?_"

"_The tenth question was whether to take the rest of the exam or not. The answer was to take it. He talked about teamwork and never putting yourself over a mission and all that… sort of like the stuff that Itachi and Otousan babble about._"

Suddenly Anko crashed in through the window, causing Naruto to groan.

"_You happen to wake me up as soon as she jumps in all flashy-like. How convenient…_" he mentally grumbled.

"_Ah shut your stupid trap…_" Masaki grumbled back. "_We're leaving, let's go._"

Naruto and Masaki stood up and met up with Sakura and Sasuke. Sasuke walked over to Naruto. "How'd you do on the test?" he asked Naruto. Said Akatsuki member grinned, showing off his sharp teeth. "I didn't do a thing! I fell into nostalgia and went to sleep. I slept through the tenth question!" Sasuke and Sakura face-vaulted at this information and struggled to get a hold of their emotions. "You WHAT?" Naruto laughed sheepishly. "We'll let's hurry up or we'll miss the second exam."

With that, Team 7 was the last to leave the room. They arrived at Training Area 44 in time to see Kiba get nicked by a kunai thrown by Anko. The grass shinobi behind Kiba returned Anko's kunai via long tongue. Both Masaki and Naruto gave each other a look. They knew only one person who had a tongue that long. '_Orochimaru…_' they both thought.

Naruto motioned for Masaki to come closer. "I want for you and me to maintain telepathic communication at all times. You stay with the Uchiha in case the hebi goes after him. I'll take the jinchuuriki." He instructed her. Masaki nodded. "Roger!" Naruto grimaced. "Open a link with Kisame and Itachi too while you're at it. We may need assistance if Orochimaru interferes." Masaki nodded and got to work.

The grass shinobi suddenly felt someone glaring at him, and he turned around to see Naruto. The shinobi's eyes narrowed, as Naruto sneered at him. The grass shinobi sneered back, and the two became set in a sort of silent sneering competition.

"_Stop sneering like that, you're getting on my nerves._" Masaki muttered.

Naruto stopped. "_Sorry, I was having a sneering contest with the hebi._"

Masaki choked on her saliva. "You're such an idiot." She sighed.

"_We have the heaven scroll._" Naruto commented.

"Alright, go to your gates! The second exam begins in 15 minutes!"

Masaki gave a worried look to Naruto. "How are you supposed to find Nibi?" Naruto grinned in a strange fox-like way. "Kyuubi taught me a tracking jutsu. I performed it on her when she wasn't looking." Masaki glared at him. "Well since you have a tracker on her and everything, it'll be pathetic if you can't capture her. Naruto glared back. "You don't trust my abilities?" She sighed. "I do, but this is a jinchuuriki AND the hebi we're talking about…"

Naruto smiled genuinely. "Don't worry. Itachi nii-san can back you up if you're in a tight spot. I'll be fine against Nibi as I have the Kyuubi." Masaki gave a genuine smile back and playfully punched his shoulder. "If you finish with her quick enough, come back and try to back me up against the hebi." Naruto chuckled. "Roger that."

With that, the two Akatsuki members returned to their teammates and set off to their gate.

As they reached their gate, Sakura gave them an interested look. "What were you two talking about?" she asked. Naruto was surprised. "Ah, well, we were talking about that creepy grass-nin. He IS creepy, don't you think? With that long tongue and all…" he discontinued the rest of the sentence.

"_Nice save…_" Masaki congratulated mentally.

Sakura shivered. "Yeah you're right. I wonder how he got such a long tongue."

"The world may never know…" Masaki said. She looked to the distance. "It's almost time, get ready." Team 7 prepared to run into the gates at a moment's notice. In 1 minute, the gate opened and they rushed in. Naruto immediately made a Kage Bunshin and sped off to the right.

"Where's that idiot going?" Sasuke yelled. "He has some business to attend to." Masaki explained. "Yeah, yeah. Master is going after a weak team he saw earlier!" the clone added. Sasuke nodded. "It doesn't really matter as we have one person extra anyway. Let's hope he finishes them quickly, because I have a bad feeling about that grass shinobi." Masaki nodded. "You're not the only one, Sasuke."

* * *

Kaoru and her team had rushed into the gate and streaked towards the tower. After several hours of nonstop travel, they landed in a small clearing to rest. In the trees, Naruto spied on them for a little while. '_Okay, a small genjutsu to fool them… and I'm off._' 

He moved stealthily behind them. "_Fox to Thunder, do you read? I have the enemy in sight._" He called out mentally.

"_Thunder to Fox, I read you. We have yet to see the hebi, but I'll give you a call if we do. Have fun playing with her. Thunder out._"

Naruto grinned. '_Playing army with telepathy is SO fun._' He quickly created a Kage Bunshin, and set a genjutsu on it so it would appear bloody and wounded. He sent it on its merry way…

* * *

Kaoru was leaning against a tree when she heard a shuffling in the bushes. She suddenly tensed, as did her two teammates. What emerged from the bushes surprised her greatly. A bleeding and wounded Naruto appeared, and stumbled to them. "Naruto!" she yelled as she ran over to him. "What happened to you!" she asked worriedly. 

Naruto winced in pain. "Ambushed within an hour," he muttered. "Orochimaru… he's here to-URK!" A kunai from the trees flew past and hit him in the heart. "She stared down at him, tearing up. Her teammates walked up to the corpse, only to have it suddenly smile. Her teammates, suddenly realizing the danger, pushed Kaoru away before the clone exploded, leaving both of them injured.

A smirking Naruto emerged from the bushes. He was fully unscathed. He sneered at the team. "Fell for my Bunshin Daibakuha did you? Kaoru stared tearfully at Naruto. "W-Why?" she whispered. "Why did you trick me?" she screamed at him.

Naruto silently stared at her. "You know how I told you there are bad men after you?" he asked her. Kaoru nodded. "I'm one of them." She gasped. "Once I apprehend you, we will determine whether to keep you alive or extract your demon."

Kaoru's teammates winced as they attempted to recover from the pain. The obvious leader yelled to her, "Kaoru, run! We'll hold him off for as long as we can! You must inform Hokage-sama!" She immediately paid heed to his words and bolted off. Naruto smirked at them. "It's useless you know. I put a tracking jutsu on her." Naruto informed them. Her teammates paled.

He smirked. "Though I do hate to kill, I suppose I must kill you two. You will only get in the way now…" he rushed at them before they could gather their bearings…

* * *

Kaoru ran as fast as she could through the forest. She scrambled through her pack. '_Flare, where's the damned emergency flare? Here!_' She took the flare and set it off. '_Now I have to stay alive for the ANBU…_' 

Meanwhile, Naruto had finished off the second of her two teammates.

"_Fox to Thunder, she ran. I still know where she is though._"

"_Thunder to Fox, what happened?_"

"_Her teammates intervened. They have been taken care of._" He suddenly noticed the flare that lit up the sky. "_Shit, call in Kisame to the position of the tracker. Have Itachi trail you guys in case the hebi shows up._"

"_Roger that. Thunder out._"

Naruto grimaced. '_At least we had a contingency plan… I didn't expect her to light a flare though… She's smarter than I had anticipated…_' His grimaced transformed into an amused smile as he set off on her trail.

* * *

On the outskirts of Training Area 44, Itachi and Kisame calmly waited while under a powerful genjutsu that hid them. 

"_This is Thunder. Shark and Weasel, do you copy?_"

"_This is Shark, we read you. What's the status?_"

"_The jinchuuriki is stubborn. She set off an emergency flare and the ANBU should be moving in soon. Also, Orochimaru has been sighted in the vicinity. Kisame, you were suggested to go after the jinchuuriki. Itachi, Naruto suggested you be with our group as you're the only one here that can take Orochimaru alone._"

"_This is Weasel. Your message has been accepted, and we are moving out. Weasel out._"

"_Tell Fox that I'll be there shortly. Shark out._"

Kisame and Itachi looked at each other and nodded before dashing into the forest in different directions.

* * *

Kaoru tried to stay as silent as possible and tried to lower her chakra signature. She felt someone enter the vicinity. 

"Oh Kaoru-chaaan, where are youuuu?" Naruto said in a singsong voice. "Your teammates can't help you now, since they're _dead_. I have your Earth scroll as well." At this, Kaoru froze. '_He killed them? That bastard!_'

"I know about that flare you set off, but it won't work."

Kaoru gathered her courage, and sent her voice to the opposite side of the clearing. "Were you lying about Orochimaru being here?"

Naruto looked to where the voice came from, and shook his head. '_She threw her voice… smart._' Naruto grinned. "Nope! That's why my partner isn't here. She's protecting the rest of the team from possible attack."

"I bet you're lying and that she's waiting here." She voiced out again.

"I swear to you I'm not, Kaoru. That's why we brought backup. My replacement partner should be here shortly, as he was right outside the forest waiting for the signal." As soon as he finished, she felt another presence enter the area.

Kisame landed in front of Naruto. "Oi, brat. Good to see you. Where's she?"

Naruto nodded. "She's trying to hide and throwing her voice, Kisame-san."

Kisame frowned. "Look here brat, we're on the same level so just call me Kisame."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "You use the san prefix when you speak with Itachi nii-san. Why can't I?"

Kaoru heard this exchange and shut her eyes tightly. '_Itachi? Uchiha Itachi? THE Uchiha Itachi that murdered the ENTIRE Uchiha clan in a single night? Oh god… I'm outmatched._'

Kisame chuckled. "Enough talk, I'll flush her out. She was foolish enough to stop near a river." He began going through many hand seals.

"**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!**" he roared.

Realizing what was going to happen, Kaoru attempted to scramble away but was caught in the torrent of water from the river she was hiding near. Flailing, the water took her straight to the men. One was Naruto, and the other looked very much like a shark. Both of them had large, frightening blades strapped to their back, and both of them were here for a reason: to capture her.

She whimpered and attempted to run but was immediately blocked by a Naruto clone. "Why don't you make it easier on yourself and give yourself up? It'll give you better chances on living, whether pre or post capture." Naruto said calmly.

Suddenly, a large explosion took place about a kilometer from their position. Kisame frowned. "Look's like Orochimaru's made his move." He turned to Kaoru. "Quickly girl, make a decision. We don't have all day, especially with that snake freak running around." Naruto looked sadly at the girl. "Kaoru, trust me on this. Just come with us…"

Kaoru looked desperately at Naruto. '_Should I believe him? He lied to me before… But then he didn't have a choice did he? He was after me… What should I do?_'

'**_Follow your heart, young one… Though I must admit, I do despise Kyuubi…_**' the Nibi said.

She nodded. "Alright, I'll go with you." Naruto gave her a stunning smile. "Alright, let's go back up Masaki. I doubt Itachi's getting involved yet, what with his brother being on the team." Kisame nodded and picked up Kaoru. "H-Hey! What are you doing?" she shouted.

"This way is faster." Kisame grunted. "Let's go, gaki." The two set off at high speed towards the point of the explosion…

* * *

Masaki had not liked the feeling of the clearing as she entered it. There was something out of place… she then spied a reed sticking out of the ground. '_So that's where the damned hebi is hiding…_' 

She went through several hand seals. She sneered at the reed. "**Raiton: Rairyuudan no Jutsu!**" she roared.

Immediately, a magnetic field formed in front of her, releasing a massive thunder dragon. Directing it to the reed, she set it to full power and let it hit the target.

**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM**

A huge explosion rocked the area, and she immediately rushed in to check the damage. She scowled when all she saw was a burnt log. '_Che, he used a replacement technique. I doubt he escape without damage though…_'

Sakura came up to her, yelling. "What the hell was that for? You just alert the rest of the teams!" Masaki glared at her. "What do you think my purpose was, pinky? I was catching Naruto's attention, and we're at a serious disadvantage-URGH!" She let out a yell as her back was imbedded with kunai. She quickly Kawarimi'd and escaped the kunai.

The grass shinobi left the tree line and walked up to Team 7. "Well, well, well… Look what we have here. Akatsuki pests!" He glanced to Masaki and the Naruto clone. "Tell me, Naruto-kun…" Sakura's eyes widened. '_That's Naruto? He's the idiot that dropped out of class after a month? I didn't recognize him!_' Sasuke's eyes narrowed. '_He was the only dropout during the Academy. How did he get so strong…_'

The grass shinobi continued. "Naruto-kun… is Itachi here?" Suddenly Sasuke's eyes widened. He turned to Naruto. "Y-You work with Itachi?" he said. Masaki snarled. "Stop trying to turn us against each other, Orochimaru!"

"Kukuku… so you already know, Masaki-chan? Tell me, how is your father, the leader of Akatsuki doing?" Orochimaru asked as he pulled off his fake face.

"I am not obliged to tell you ANYTHING!" she hissed.

"Oh how rude, Masaki-chan. I was merely curious, as it's been several years since I left the organization." Orochimaru smiled evilly. "I was expecting you to at least have some courtesy."

"The only thing you should expect is DEATH, traitor!" she roared as she began one-handed seals with both hands. "**Raiton Tora no Jutsu! Raiton Tori no Jutsu!**" A magnetic field appeared, sending out a roaring tiger made of thunder and a swift bird made of thunder.

Orochimaru frowned. "So be it, Akatsuki pest. **Doton: Doryu Heki!**"

The thunder tiger made contact with the wall and dispersed, but the thunderbird flew over and flew straight at Orochimaru. It hit him, paralyzing him. Masaki rushed forward and unsheathed a hidden katana, slashing Orochimaru into two. She watched disappointedly as he turned out to be a Mud Clone.

"So tell me, Masaki-chan…" Orochimaru said as he destroyed the Naruto clone. "Was that Rairyuudan technique to call for the _real_ Naruto-kun?"

Masaki shook her head. "Not just him, but Kisame as well. You remember him don't you?"

Orochimaru winced. "So you brought backup? You're smarter than I thought, Masaki-chan. In that case, I'll have to end this quickly!" He rushed forward.

"**Katon: Karyuu Endan no Jutsu!**"

"**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!**"

The two jutsus rammed the floor where Orochimaru would've been, had he not jumped back in time. He looked up to see Naruto. Next to him, he saw Kisame holding on to a girl. Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "Who's the child, Kisame?"

Kisame merely laughed. "She's a jinchuuriki my foolish friend. You were too busy with your own crap to notice her." Orochimaru growled. '_To think I missed that detail…_'

"Oh by the way, Orochimaru…" Naruto said out loud. "Sabaku no Gaara is next on our list. You will not interfere with our plans." Orochimaru ground his teeth. "You will do NOTHING with Sabaku no Gaara! He is essential in my plans, and is in this case the rook that I so desperately need."

Naruto turned and gave Sasuke a look. Sasuke interpreted it as a "Something is going to happen, don't overreact" look. Naruto smiled as Sasuke got the message and looked up. "Itachi nii-san, you may come out." Sasuke and Orochimaru's eyes widened as Itachi stepped out of the bushes behind Orochimaru.

"So we meet again, Orochimaru…" Itachi spoke calmly. Sasuke gave Naruto a furious look, which he interpreted as a "he's your _brother_?" look. Naruto merely jumped down and walked over to him. "I'll explain everything later, Sasuke. Just be patient for a bit." Sasuke nodded.

He turned to watch Itachi and Orochimaru face off. "Che, four Akatsuki members is not odds to be playing with…" he said before running off. Itachi quickly looked to the others. "Kisame, get her to the leader! Naruto and the rest, follow me!"

Obeying, they immediately set off on Orochimaru's trail.

"_Fox to Weasel, I set a tracking jutsu on him while he faced you off. I don't know if he's noticed it yet, but if he stops to remove it we can catch up to him. If he doesn't, we catch up to him anyway._"

"_Weasel to Fox, good job otouto. I've trained you well. Now, let's end this menace once and for all._"

"_Thunder to the rest, I sense incoming chakra signatures. I'm guessing ANBU._"

"_Weasel to Thunder, understood. I'll take care of that bit._" Itachi then slowed down. "Sasuke!" he yelled out.

Sasuke's head shot up. "Yes?"

"For the moment, we are being chased by ANBU. I need you to split off to lead them in another direction." Itachi then tossed Sasuke a device. "Once you get them off our trail, you can catch up to us with this tracking device. Good luck."

Sasuke nodded, before pulling Sakura away from the group, making sure to leave obvious evidence. '_I don't know why I'm doing this, but something tells me that my brother isn't all that evil I thought him up to be…_'

"Sasuke-kun! What are we doing? Why are you listening to them? Aren't they traitors?"

Sasuke grit his teeth. "We're leading the ANBU away. I'm listening to them because they can get rid of Orochimaru. They may be traitors, but they still have some honor. And as for my brother, I'm thinking of this as a temporary ceasefire."

Sakura nodded. "The enemy of our enemy is an ally. Good thinking, Sasuke-kun. Let's just hope they can kill him."

"I do too, but Orochimaru is supposed to be a sneaky bastard. He'll most likely escape by using meat shields or some other crap."

"Sasuke-kun, the ANBU are getting closer. We need to think of some sort of excuse before they arrive."

"I'm already on it, Sakura."

In 5 minutes, the ANBU had caught up to the remaining members of Team 7.

"Halt! Who set off the emergency flare?" the lead ANBU asked them.

"It wasn't us, ANBU-san. It was a girl, and she was kidnapped by missing-nin that infiltrated the Chuunin Exams. We split off from them as soon as we spotted them, so umm… I guess you missed them." Sakura said with a guilty tone, as she shuffled her feet. The ANBU sighed. "It's alright. I suppose it was common sense that made you run from superior shinobi. I do wish that we hadn't spent all our time chasing the wrong path though."

He raised a hand and the ANBU left in pursuit of the missing-nins. Sasuke grinned at Sakura. "Nice acting, Sakura. Have you ever thought about taking up drama?" He joked. Sakura pouted. "It's not nice to tease someone like that, Sasuke-kun." Sasuke smirked. "Let's go find the others."

* * *

Naruto, Itachi, and Masaki continued after Orochimaru. Itachi, being the faster one, sped ahead while he left the two remaining members to bring up the rear. Masaki suddenly tensed. 

"_Thunder to the rest, 3 ANBU teams coming from the behind, 10 minutes away. They are a special tracker unit, dammit!_"

"_Weasel to Thunder, hold them off for as long as possible. Possibly feed them information about Orochimaru. Weasel out._"

"_Thunder to Fox, what do you think?_"

"_Fox to Thunder, I say we make Kage Bunshins and continue on and leave the explaining to the Kage Bunshins._"

"_Good idea. Transform them into Itachi and Kisame without the cloak on though. Thunder out._"

The two immediately made Kage Bunshins; Henge'd them, and gave them their orders. Leaving the clones behind, they rushed on ahead to catch up with Itachi. Charging chakra into their feet to increase their speed, they zoomed past humongous trees in an effort to catch Orochimaru.

'_Damn, we're nearing the edge of the forest. We need to catch him, NOW!_' Naruto thought.

Increasing their speed, they quickly began closing the distance between Itachi and Orochimaru. Naruto narrowed his eyes when he felt the Kage Bunshins puff out of existence. "_Fox to Weasel, our Kage Bunshins were destroyed. It seems they tried to reason with the ANBU but they had orders to attack on sight._"

"_Thunder to rest. I guess it was worth a try, let's pick up the pace, we can't let that hebi escape._"

"_Shark to rest, I've taken her to the leader. What do you suggest we do with her?_"

"_Fox to Thunder, let's train her. If she proves to be stronger than any Akatsuki member without the use of her bijuu at the end of her training, we can replace them. We have no need for weak members._"

There was a pause as Kisame spoke with Yoshi. "_Shark to Fox, your plan is a go. Leader congratulates you on a wonderful plan._"

"_Alright, understood. Fox out._"

* * *

Orochimaru ran haphazardly through the trees. '_Dammit, if they catch up I'm done for. And I can't believe I missed that jinchuuriki! Dammit!_' He sensed movement 15 meters behind him. '_Damn that Itachi! My plans will be ruined!_' 

Orochimaru sped up to his maximum speed in a last ditch attempt to escape. '_How are they still on my trail?_' he wondered. '_I did see the Kyuubi brat going through seals… a tracking jutsu! Dammit!__There's no time to remove it, I must keep going…_'

* * *

"_Weasel reporting, the snake is in my sights. Proceeding to use Amaterasu._" 

An explosion was heard in the forest where Itachi was, and a large plume of smoke appeared.

"_Weasel to rest, he summoned Manda!_"

"_This is Fox, I'm going in!_" With a burst of Kyuubi chakra, Naruto rushed through the forest at increased speeds. While Itachi dealt with Manda, Naruto rushed past and continued on Orochimaru's trail. He quickly caught up to him, and Orochimaru looked at him in surprise.

"Why Naruto-kun, I never knew you could harness Kyuubi's power!" he said in delight.

"There are many things you don't know about me, hebi, and plenty more you will NEVER know!" he yelled before going through hand seals. Throwing a strange kunai past Orochimaru, he yelled "**Shoushen Raiton Hei no Jutsu!**"A wall of thunder appeared where the kunai landed, and Naruto started throwing shuriken above it.

Orochimaru, seeing the wall, attempted to jump over it, but the shuriken surrounded the area and twisted around him. '_What! He's controlling them!_' he thought. Panicking, he quickly went through the seals for a Kawarimi. Right before the wires could stop his movements, he replaced himself with a log.

"What the- crap!" Naruto quickly burst forward but it was too late. He saw Orochimaru finishing up some hand seals and disappearing in a wave of fire. "DAMMIT!" Naruto roared. In several minutes, Itachi and Masaki landed next to him.

"Naruto, what happened?" Masaki demanded.

Naruto stared at the floor. "He got away with a Kawarimi moments before I had him bound."

Itachi sighed. "Well, we might have missed him this time, but he will surely hang around Sabaku no Gaara, since he is a 'rook' in Orochimaru's plans." Itachi looked around. "Naruto and Masaki, go back to your team. I will leave with Kisame and the leader. After the Chuunin Exams, it's your job to train the girl."

Naruto began to protest but Itachi left immediately. Naruto frowned and pouted. "Why does he make ME train her?"

They head off to where Sasuke and Sakura were, and they met each other halfway. Sasuke gave Naruto an asking look, and Naruto saw this. "I'll tell you once we reach the tower, since we have both scrolls. We should be able to make it in a day, leaving 3 more days to talk." Naruto told him.

Sasuke nodded and Team 7 rushed off to the tower.

* * *

My longest damned chapter yet. It's 9000+ words :O I did the telepathic thing because it's so cool to talk Army like. I hope I was more descriptive and such, just as the criticizers suggested. 

**Vocabulary**

Matte – Wait

Jyuuken - Gentle Fist

Kumo - Cloud

_Ryoku _**Kaoru** – _Strength_ **Fragrant**

Samehada – Shark Skin

Hebi – Snake

Bijuu - Demon

Kawarimi – Replacement

Sabaku no Gaara – Gaara of the Desert

**Question and Answer**

**How are you going to tie in Orochimaru and Akatsuki with all this?** One word, jinchuuriki.

**Could you slow down a bit and develop the story a bit more? **Of course!

**Will Orochimaru put the curse seal on Sasuke? **Not now, no.

**Jutsu List:**

**Konoha Daisenpuu (Leaf Great Whirlwind)**** - D-Rank - The user jumps and performs a spin kick with both legs. The first aiming at the torso, the second aiming at the legs, to hit the enemy in case they duck under the first kick.  
**

**Bunshin Daibakuha (Clone Great Explosion) A-Rank – Used in conjunction with the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, the user creates a shadow clone that will explode on command, killing or injuring the victim.**

**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu (Water Element: Great Waterfall Technique) - A-Rank - The user uses the water around them to create a huge cyclone that is sent at the opponent. The technique is so powerful that it can rip out tree roots and suck up large debris.  
**

**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Element: Water Dragon Blast Technique) A-Rank – An attack that creates a huge current water in the shape of a dragon. A devastating single attack, the user does not need to be in or on water to perform the jutsu.**

**Raiton: Rairyuudan no Jutsu (Thunder Element: Thunder Dragon Blast Technique)**** - A-Rank - The user creates a dragon from a magnetic field that hits the opponent forcefully with a blast of thunder. This technique can be controlled to knock out or paralyze an opponent instead of killing them instantly.  
**

**Raiton Tora no Jutsu (Thunder Tiger Technique)**** - B-Rank - The user creates an electrical tiger from a magnetic field. This tiger can charge at the opponent a maximum of three times, going at up to fifty miles per hour. If the jutsu connects head on, there is a seventy percent chance of paralyzation, fifty percent chance of a black out, and a nearly zero percent death. This technique can be used alongside the Raiton Tori no Jutsu.  
**

**Raiton Tori no Jutsu (Thunder Bird Technique)**** - B-Rank - The user creates an electrical bird from a magnetic field. This creature will attack the first thing it sees, friend or foe, but if by chance this technique is used alongside the Raiton Tora no Jutsu, the bird will take orders from the tiger. The percentages are the same as the tiger.  
**

**Shoushen Raiton Hei no Jutsu (Rising Thunder Wall Technique)**** - A-Rank - The user sets up a wall of electricity to rise up in front of them. This shield is immune to metal projectiles, taijutsu, and earth type ninjutsu.  
**

**Doton: Doryu Heki (Earth Element: Mud Slide Barrier)**** - A-Rank - The user spits out mud from their mouth to create a thick wall of mud and earth that defends against most attacks.  
**

**Katon: Karyuu Endan (Fire Element: Fire Dragon Blast)**** - A-Rank - The user sends a stream of fire in the shape of a dragon at the enemy, coming from their mouth. This technique can burn the user's throat if they do not master the technique.  
**

**Amaterasu (Shining Heaven)**** - Bloodline Technique - A legendary jutsu that emits black flames, these flames are rumored to be as hot as the sun, and will burn for seven days and seven nights if it isn't sealed up. Used along with the Mangekyou Sharingan, this technique uses a large amount of chakra.  
**

**Author's Note:  
**

Stay tuned for Chapter 4: Chuunin Exams Part 2

Rate and Review the latest chapter. Ja ne!


	5. Preliminaries

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 4: Chuunin Exams Part 2

----

**Words:** 23,024 **Reviews:** 39 **Hits:** 6,737 **Favs: **34 **Alerts:** 73

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

"**Half Demon**"

All hail my newly edited Chapter 4. Once again, I put in more Kakashi scenes (Damn the pervert!) I also modified a lot of sentences.

* * *

Later that day… 

"Jesus Christ, Naruto! Forcing us to run all the way to the tower nonstop is not what I would call a light run!" Sasuke roared.

Naruto pouted. "You just have low stamina is all, chicken-head!" Naruto teased.

A vein appeared on his forehead. "What was that, blondey?" Sasuke retorted.

"Guys, let's just get along for the time being and enter the _damned_ tower!" Masaki said forcefully while cracking her knuckles.

Both Naruto and Sasuke began sweating and nodded in unison.

'_As long as she doesn't beat me up…_' they both thought fearfully.

Sakura shuffled her feet. "When are you going to explain everything?" she asked nervously.

"When we finish this stage of the exam. We won't be safe until we complete it." Masaki informed her.

Thus, Team 7 entered the tower and looked around the empty room. "Maybe we should open both scrolls?" Naruto suggested.

Masaki rolled her eyes. "Naw, you think? How about a free for all death match instead?" she drawled with intended sarcasm.

Naruto brightened up. "Really?"

Sakura smacked him upside the head. "She was being sarcastic, moron!"

Sasuke mumbled something about 'idiots making my life hell' and pulled out the Heaven scroll. Naruto pulled out the Earth scroll that he had pilfered and opened them at once. A strange purple smoke began coming from the scrolls. "It's a summoning scroll, throw it!" Naruto mumbled.

Unfortunately, Sasuke was not able to throw it in time and was suddenly being crushed by a confused Iruka.

Iruka looked at Naruto, Masaki, then at Sakura. "Where's Sasuke?"

Sakura silently pointed at his feet, making him look down. He sweatdropped and immediately jumped off the gasping Uchiha. "Ooh, sorry about that Sasuke. You should've gotten rid of the scroll."

Naruto took the time to fall into nostalgia again and tuned out the rest of the world.

---Flashback---

It was 3 months before the Chuunin Exams, and Naruto ran through the halls in the Akatsuki base and sharply turned a corner, barely avoiding an angry Kisame.

"THAT'S THE LAST TIME YOU'RE EVER GOING TO PRANK ME, BRAT!" Kisame screamed in anger.

Naruto quickly created a Kage Bunshin and ducked into a door to his left, leaving Kisame to chase after the hapless clone. He breathed a sigh of relief, when he suddenly stiffened. He slowly turned to see Masaki exiting the bathroom, wearing nothing but a towel.

Naruto was silent for what seemed like forever, before he flew back with blood spurting from his nose. Crashing through the door, he lay twitching on the floor.

Kisame had unfortunately at the time caught the clone. Disappointed, he was walking down the same hall when Naruto flew out the door. He paused when he noticed the nose blood. He turned to see a still frozen Masaki with a shocked expression on her face. Understanding what had happened, he picked up Naruto by the scruff of the neck and began dragging him away, very quickly.

Naruto soon regained consciousness and looked up at Kisame. "Ne, Kisame-san? Why are you dragging me?" he asked curiously.

Kisame frowned at him. "You're in some deep trouble, brat. You should've seen the expression on poor Masaki's face!" Kisame broke into a laugh.

"And pray tell, what expression was it and why did she have it?" A quiet voice behind them asked.

Kisame and Naruto both froze, and turned around to come face to face with none other than Yoshi himself. Kisame began sweating profusely, while Naruto scrambled to run away. When Deidara appeared on the scene, Kisame had begun running off as well.

Yoshi turned to Deidara. "Did you find out what happened?" Deidara nodded silently.

"Tell me." Yoshi demanded.

Deidara began reciting what he had seen. "Ah… Kisame was chasing Naruto, yeah. Naruto ducked into a room to hide and saw Masaki with only a towel, yeah. He flew through the door and Kisame found him. Kisame saw Masaki too, and boy was she shocked, yeah. Poor Masaki-chan. To think she was intruded upon even in the privacy of her own room, yeah…"

A look of pure fury came upon Yoshi's face. Deidara slowly backed away, with one thought running on repeat in his mind. 'Boy, those two are screwed, yeah.'

Their screams reverberated throughout the base and sent one thought through everyone's minds. '_Do NOT mess around with Yoshi's precious daughter._'

---End Flashback---

Naruto sighed. What Yoshi had done to them was something he did not like to discuss. Deidara suspected it involved their manliness, pain, and physical torture.

'_Had to admit, that was a once in a lifetime opportunity though…_' Naruto thought dreamily.

"Takai… Takai… TAKAI! Iruka left!" Masaki yelled in frustration.

Naruto quickly snapped out of it. "Huh? Towel!"

Masaki's emotions quickly performed a 180 and transformed into rage. "ERO-BAKA!" She screamed as she punched his head vigorously. "How dare you speak of that in front of me!" As the beating continued, Sakura turned to Sasuke.

"Why did she call him Takai? Are we supposed to keep up the act?" Sakura asked curiously.

Sasuke merely shrugged. "If they choose to keep up the act, it's not my problem as long as they explain everything to us. I suggest we keep this a secret indefinitely until we receive their permission though…"

Sakura nodded in agreement.

After the beating was complete, Masaki turned to them.

"What is it you want to know, exactly?"

Sasuke set his mouth in a line. "Why did Itachi kill the clan? For what purpose did he do it? And how do you and Takai relate to my brother?"

Naruto frowned. "He's never shared that with us. You'll have to ask him in person."

Sasuke nodded. "Next question."

"He did it to test your heart's strength. You see, if you had listened to his words about hate, then you pushed away everyone close to you and you would drown in the hate, thus slowly making your heart's strength wane. The purpose of the test was for you to find how to truly become strong. As one man said to me before, you are never truly strong unless you are protecting those precious to you. Protecting those precious people will bring out your true strength, and Itachi hoped that you would find it out." Naruto explained in detail. "He wants you to be the one to take his life so he can stop living the nightmare which is his life. He gave you the test because you absolutely would not be able to defeat him with merely hatred."

Masaki continued where he left off. "As for how we relate to him, my father is the leader of Akatsuki. He recruited Itachi in the first place. We joined Akatsuki about a year ago."

"Now… what say you guys to a shower and a visit to the cafeteria? I'm starving!" Naruto complained.

Masaki glared. "Is food all you can think about? Though I admit a shower would be nice."

Naruto snickered. "Towel." He immediately ran at top speed into the hall.

Masaki's right eye twitched, and immediately ran after Naruto. After 3 minutes, a loud noise was heard from somewhere in the tower.

"ERO-BAKA!"

BOOM 

"AGH!"

Sasuke sweatdropped. '_Sure wouldn't want to piss her off…_' he thought.

Sasuke found Naruto rubbing his sore head and sulking against the wall. "She just can't take a freaking joke," he muttered to himself.

Naruto looked up to see an annoyed Sasuke. He sighed. "What do you want?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Whatever happened to our plan of taking a shower and going to the cafeteria?" Naruto brightened up. "Oh yeah! Let's go! Where's Sakura by the way?"

"No idea. I suspect she went a different route." Sasuke shrugged as he said this. "Anyway, there are two rooms per team. One is for females and the other is for males. Ours is room 31."

As soon as this was said, Naruto immediately disappeared in a flurry of leaves.

Sasuke stood there, speechless. "DAMN NARUTO, YOU'D BETTER NOT USE ALL THE HOT WATER!" he roared before running at top speed to room 31.

It was 20 minutes later and Team 7 was on their way to the cafeteria. Sasuke was still pissed that Naruto had used up all the hot water in the shower, and Masaki was still wary of Naruto and certain five letter words.

They walked into the cafeteria, spotting only two teams, one of them being Team 8, the other being the Sand team. "Heh, either everyone sucks or we're here early." Sasuke commented.

"Well, it IS the first day you know…" Sakura muttered. "It's not like everyone has special tracking skills, two S-Class shinobi, or a demon…"

Naruto nodded. "Quite true. I suspect we'll see a steady flow in the next few days. Now, let's eat!" he declared.

He went over to the trays of food and saw a huge variety, including ramen. After getting caught and berated by Masaki when he tried to take the entire tray of ramen, he silently ate his meal and sent a glare every few minutes at Masaki.

After they had finished, Naruto got up and stretched. Yawning loudly, he mumbled something sounding like 'Sleeping all day' and disappeared in a pillar of fire.

"Damn, I wish I could teleport like that." Sasuke complained. "It would save me the trouble of walking everywhere."

"That Naruto uses it to get _everywhere_, I swear…" Masaki said while shaking her head.

And just as Naruto predicted, the number of teams inside the tower steadily grew until the final day arrived.

As all the teams that had passed stood in front of the Sandaime as he said his speech, he decided to take the time to have a man-to-man talk with Kyuubi. Concentrating, his eyes quickly glazed over as his consciousness spiraled into the recesses of his mind.

Naruto found himself in a pathway. '_Dammit, when will I ever learn to take myself directly to the stupid fur ball…_' he thought to himself. He trudged along the dark path, taking a quick look at the pipes above him. '_Huh, that's funny… they were smaller the last time I came here._'

He finally turned left and opened the door in front of him. He slunk inside and went in front of the cage. "Oi, baka fox. Care to tell me why the pipes are bigger?"

The Kyuubi snorted from its sleep and glared at him. "**I thought for someone of your intellect, you would've known by now. When those pipes increase, I can also pump more chakra into you when you need it.**"

"So that means…"

"**Yeah, you're maximum chakra capacity for handling my chakra is slowly enlarging.**"

"When will I be able to get four tails and not go berserk?"

"**In a few months at the least. Just be more patient, brat. It's not everyday your body adjusts itself so it can handle more demon chakra.**"

Naruto frowned slightly. "If I used four tails in a few months, what would my level be at?"

"**Che, how should _I_ know? Anyways unless you start training again, you'll never get near Itachi's level without the use of five tails at the least.**"

"Che, training is boring. I'll find something better to train on, like a new style."

"**I can teach you a jutsu that can transform you into a half-demon…**"

Naruto froze. "What's the catch?"

"**If you leave it on too long, you'll eventually become a demon. The good thing is, every time you reuse it, the timer restarts. 12 hours is the max time limit.**"

Naruto smiled widely. "That's the most useful thing I've ever heard!"

"**Alright, I'll teach it to you. It's called Yami Tsuki Henshin.**"

"Any benefits from transforming?" Naruto asked curiously.

"**Of course. Your chakra gets replenished by 50 percent of your maximum, but you can't go over 100 percent. Also, when you transform you immediately get a boost in your speed and power, ranging from 150 to 200 percent. You can also take much more damage in demon form.**"

"Alright then foxy, what are the seals?"

"**Bah. It's Dragon, Tiger, Horse, Dragon, Snake, Dragon, Ox, and Dragon.**"

"Whoa, lots of Dragon seals in there." Naruto muttered.

"**Test drive it out during your preliminaries.**"

"What? Preliminaries? What the hell, they haven't done one of those in years!"

"**Too many people passed this year. I'm cutting the link now since the old man finished his speech. Sayonara, brat.**"

"Dumbass fox!" Naruto shouted before he was sent flying back into his own consciousness. He looked around to see everyone moving, so he followed Masaki up a set of stairs. "Stupid preliminaries…" Naruto muttered.

"_And how would you know? You were in your own little world._" Masaki said after opening a link.

"_Damned fox told me after he taught me a new jutsu._"

"_Ooh, what does it do?_" Masaki said, bubbling with excitement.

"_I can transform into a half-demon with a time limit of 12 hours until I become full demon._"

"_Cool. Hey, the preliminaries are starting, but I'm hungry. Can you go get me some food?_" Masaki pleaded.

Naruto was about to reply a negative when Masaki suddenly turned to him, puppy dog eyes at full blast.

"_Ugh, god dammit fine! When will you stop using that on me!_" Naruto yelled mentally.

"_I'll stop the day you become smart._"

"_Ha, hah. That was so funny I forgot to laugh. Whatever, I'll be gone for a bit. Warn me if my name comes up._" He then closed the link and left the room with several people staring at him.

"Where's he going?" Kurenai asked Kakashi. He looked up from his book and then turned to see Naruto leaving. "Probably going to the cafeteria. Not many people know that it's open during the Exams…"

Naruto grumbled as he walked to the cafeteria.

"Stinking girl can't even go and get her own food… Why did she even skip breakfast in the first place?" he complained. He paused. "Come to think of it, she didn't even specify a food!"

He groaned and entered the cafeteria. It had a few employees eating brunch, so he walked up to the counter and took what he could. "If she doesn't like what I bring her, well screw her!" he muttered fiercely.

He left quickly and walked in silence back to the room where the preliminaries were being held, and decided to check up with Masaki.

"_Yo! How's everything so far? And don't ask about the food, I have it._"

"_I've seen Uchiha and some chakra sucking dude named Yoroi Akado fight. Sasuke wiped the floor with him. One of the Sand shinobi named Kankuro fought some weird guy named Tsurugu Misumi. Misumi can stretch his body and disconnect bones, yuck. Kankuro is a puppeteer. Sakura and Yamanaka Ino knocked each other out in a draw. Nara Shikamaru beat Aburame Shino with superior strategies. Temari freaking owned Tenten. Hurry it up, will you?_"

"_Alright, geez. Women…_"

He picked up his pace and entered the room when the electronic board flashed.

Hayai Takai vs. Inuzuka Kiba

He set his mouth into a grim line. "Hey, Masaki! Catch!" he roared as he threw the tray of food like a boomerang. Surprised, she barely managed to catch it. "You IDIOT!" she roared back.

Kurenai sweatdropped and Kakashi coughed. "They don't act it but they have excellent teamwork," Kakashi told her. "It's only natural for pre-teens to act like that... at least I think so..."

Naruto walked up to the center and faced the boy named Kiba. He wrinkled his nose. "You reek of dog! Yuck." He said out loud.

Kiba sneered. "At least dog is better than fox."

Naruto glared. "Bring it, dog boy."

The examiner coughed. "Hayai Takai against -cough- Inuzuka Kiba. Begin!"

Kiba immediately began with his own techniques after his dog, Akamaru, jumped out of his jacket. "**Ninpou: Jujin Bunshin!**" The jutsu caused Akamaru to transform into a Kiba. "**Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu!**" Kiba and Akamaru both went on four legs as his nails lengthened into claws. He grinned cheekily. "Scared? You should forfeit while you have the chance."

Naruto sneered. "Time to test out the jutsu I learned before coming." He went through the designated hand seals. "**Yami Tsuki Henshin!**" Suddenly, before everyone's very eyes, he began to transform. His skin turned midnight black, and six, sharp, two-foot long spikes emerged from his back, one on each side and going down in pairs. His head and neck elongated and shaped itself into a demon's head, complete with two-inch long mandibles that dribbled saliva. (Masaki 'ew'ed at this in particular) His arms grew muscular and his nails turned to long five-inch long claws. A large and long spiked tail emerged. He had no pupils; instead his entire eyes were crimson red. His midnight black skin began to harden into armor, and his height grew to about 6 feet. Back hunched over, he grinned maniacally at Kiba, who paled instantly. Kakashi's Sharingan eye was revealed, and scanning the technique.

'_Fortunately, he didn't copy my jutsu,_' Naruto thought in relief.

"W-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?" he screamed.

The response came in a raspy snarl. "**You're worst nightmare!**"

He immediately flickered behind Kiba, and slashed his back with his claws. He yelled out in pain and flew forward. Akamaru roared and charged at him. Naruto merely swung an arm and sent Akamaru flying.

Kiba slowly got up and handed Akamaru a soldier pill. "Bring it on! **Gatsuuga!**"

The two cyclones of destruction rushed at him, but Naruto was unmoving. Kiba and Akamaru slammed and drilled into Naruto and all three went into the wall. The two partners jumped back and sneered. "So much for _transformation_! What a load of… what the...?"

The smoke cleared to see Naruto, uninjured, in an obvious grin. "**That tickled. Let's have some more fun! Seishin Utsu!**" Large amounts of chakra began to focus around his clawed hands. Charging forward, Kiba attempted to jump back, and got clipped. He grinned after dodging, but his emotion suddenly went from grinning, to shock, and finally to disbelief.

Mouth gaping as he fell, he noticed the sheer amount flesh that the attack had torn off him. '_Is this... the end?_' Pain racking his body, he attempted to crawl away as the 'demon' neared him. "**Seishin-!**" Suddenly, Hayate and Kakashi were standing in front of him. "That's enough, Takai. It's just plain cruel to kill him now," Kakashi murmured. "**Che, just when I was about to deal the death blow…**" He put his demonic hands into a seal. Concentrating, his demonic body began to recede back to its normal human form. He winced slightly as he walked up the stairs.

Hayate checked up on Kiba and signaled for the medics. Standing up, he held out a hand. "Winner, Hayai Takai!"

The participants stared in disbelief at what had happened. There were a few thoughts running around their heads, but they were mostly the same.

'_That guy's a monster!_'

'_Finally… worthy blood…_'

'_That guy's as evil as Gaara!_'

'_How frightening. Just looking at him made me shiver, but his chakra made me downright afraid…_'

'_Hmm… he performed a half-demon transformation? Interesting…_'

Masaki glared at him as he approached her. "That was overkill." She muttered.

Naruto merely shrugged it off. "I had to test it somehow. It's a really good jutsu when you want to end things fast." He then looked at her empty and spotless plate. "You ate it all _already_? And you _licked_ it clean?"

She flushed a crimson red. "I was hungry, dammit!"

He smirked and waved it off. "Whatever. Link me."

She obliged and soon the two were talking mentally and away from stray eyes and ears.

"_Let's watch the Ichibi jinchuuriki closely._" Naruto suggested.

"_Why?_"

"_We have to know what he's capable of. It's not good if a shinobi doesn't know what he's up against._"

"_Che. I suppose we shouldn't underestimate the brat?_" Masaki asked lightly.

"_Not one bit. He is deadly I suppose, but with my demon speed I should be able to neutralize him easily. If all else fails, I'll use Seishin Utsu._"

"_Get Kyuubi to teach me a jutsu! Please?_" She then used the puppy eyes on him.

"_Oh god, stop that, fine! God damn!" _he cursed as he connected a chakra string to her. "_Kyuubi will warn you when it's your turn._"

And both of their eyes suddenly glazed over.

They found themselves in front of a massive door. "Well, at least I can get myself in front of the door instead of 15 minutes away in a random passage."

Masaki deadpanned. "Just open the stupid door…"

He sighed, but did so. The two Akatsuki members walked in and went up to the cage.

"Oi, fox! Masaki here wants to learn a jutsu off you."

"**Sheesh, must you bother me every hour of the day? Do I look like a jutsu library to you?**" Kyuubi complained.

Masaki frowned. "Uh, yes?"

"**Stupid brat, don't piss me off. Since I'm in a medium good mood right now, I'll teach you a jutsu. I call it Hakanai Shouri. What it does, for a short amount of time you will get a massive speed boost, depending on how much chakra you use. The seals are dragon, snake, boar, tiger, horse, and horse. Now let me get some shuteye!**"

Forcing them out, Kyuubi retreated into the depths of his cage to get some much-needed sleep.

"Sheesh, what a loser…" Naruto muttered, speaking of both Kyuubi and Neji, who had just tried to kill his cousin. When people heard this, they muttered their agreement. "_Neji is such an arrogant asshole!_ _I should kick his ass!_" Naruto raged.

"_I know, he acts like he has a kunai up his nether region all the time._" Masaki commented.

"_Hey, they're done. It's your turn._"

Masaki jumped down to face her opponent, Zaku Abumi. He sneered. "Little girls like you should forfeit before you get hurt."

Masaki scoffed. "Like a weakling like you could hurt me, much less defeat me."

Hayate looked left and right. "-cough- Amatsuyochi Masaki vs. Zaku Abumi, Begin!"

"**Zankuuha!**" Zaku roared.

A large blast of air blasted the spot Masaki was standing in. Zaku rubbed his nose with a finger. "Heh, nothing left of her."

"Nothing left of who?" muttered a voice behind him. He quickly turned around but was unable to block. Masaki backhanded him across the floor and into the wall.

"H-How did you dodge?" he stammered.

"**Hakanai Shouri**" she whispered next to him. Suddenly, the Masaki in front of him disappeared into after images, the final image coming to a stop next to him. She held up a kunai to his neck. "Forfeit or _die_".

Zaku snarled and brought up his hands, but he was too slow. She immediately cut his throat, and his body slumped over. "I _warned_ you."

She Shunshin'd up to Naruto and sighed. "This is no fun."

Naruto shrugged. "I'll take what I can get. Now let's watch the rest of the matches."

The next match was uneventful. It was Yakushi Kabuto vs. Akimichi Chouji. Kabuto dodged the steam tank and immediately held a kunai to Chouji's neck, as Masaki had done.

The fight after, involving Dosu Kinuta and Kin Tsuchi, went by extremely slowly. Knowing each other's weaknesses made it harder to win, but eventually Dosu's speed and stamina won out.

Gaara and Rock Lee's battle was much more interesting, with Gaara winning by only a small margin. '_I was impressed by that Lee though…_' Naruto thought. '_To be able to open five gates at so young an age, it is quite a feat._'

The remaining participants then picked numbers from a box.

The Hokage coughed. "The matches in the final exams are as follows:

Amatsuyochi Masaki vs. Hyuuga Neji

Uchiha Sasuke vs. Sabaku no Kankuro

Nara Shikamaru vs. Sabaku no Temari

Hayai Takai vs. Sabaku no Gaara

Dosu Kinuta vs. Yakushi Kabuto

You all have a month to train and prepare for the final exams. Good luck, all of you!"

Naruto trudged home after the preliminaries. Masaki had gone clothes browsing, leaving him alone. He suddenly noticed a lone girl sitting on a bench in the park.

He squinted, her features slowly sharpening. '_Silver gray hair… amethyst eyes… oh. My. God._' He quickly turned to walk away when she caught sight of him.

"Wait! Your leader told me to tell you that you had to train me!" she called out to him.

Naruto froze in his tracks, and slowly turned. '_Don't tell me she said what she just said._'

'**Alright, I WON'T tell you.**'

'_Shut it, damn fox._'

Naruto sighed. "Can't someone else train you?"

She shook her head. "He said they were all out on long term missions."

He groaned loudly enough for her to hear. "Alright, alright. I'll train you, but I'm not nearly as good in teaching as the others. Meet me here tomorrow morning at 5am."

She nodded, and went off to think. Naruto sighed at the predicament he was in. '_Great, now leader sets me up to be a sensei…_ _This is going to be one hell of a month…_' he thought dejectedly and went home.

He slowly closed the door behind him and opened a link to one of his 'suppliers'.

"_Hey, how is the new shipment of steel?_"

"_It arrived on schedule, Naruto-san._"

"_What of the construction?_" Naruto questioned the unknown man.

"_We are ahead of the schedule by 3 months._"

"_Good. Start the search for the strong ones. I will be there in 2 months, be ready by then._"

"_Hai, Naruto-san!_"

With that, the transmission ended. Naruto grumbled. "This is too much work for a mere 13 year old…"

Screaming in frustration, he took his stress out on his pillow and went to sleep afterward.

The next day…

Kaoru sighed loudly. Naruto was training her into the ground, and there were no signs that he was going to let up.

"Naruto-san, do I have to keep doing this?" she complained. Currently, she was forced to stand all day on the water, walking back and forth.

Naruto looked up from his novel. "Yes, Kaoru. You need to hone your chakra control, and I doubt you need higher chakra reserves."

She glared at him. "I want to do something else!" she said hotly.

Naruto abruptly slammed his book shut, and grinned in a Kisame-like manner. "Come over here then, Kaoru-_chan_." Naruto said in a sickeningly sweet voice.

Kaoru shivered. '_Not good, he added the chan at the end. He only does that when he's being cruel…_' Kaoru nevertheless followed his instruction and walked up to him.

Naruto quickly pulled out 5 paper seals from his pocket and handed them to her. "Put one on each of your limbs, and one around your waist." She did as instructed and then looked back at him.

'_He still has that creepy grin… What's he planning?_' she thought to herself. She would find out soon enough… Naruto performed a single seal, and suddenly Kaoru felt like a ton of lead. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?" she screeched.

Naruto smirked evilly. "Gravity seals. I won't teach you how to release them until you finish weight training." Kaoru gaped at him. She opened and closed her mouth, no noise coming out. Clenching her fist, one thought ran into her mind. 'Must… Kill… Blonde!'

"Oh, and one more thing. Every time you can't finish an exercise, or if you attack or disobey me, I'll up the weights."

She gave him a glare worthy of rivaling Yoshi's anger mode, and grit her teeth. "When I'm done with the weight training, I'll KILL YOU!" she roared.

Naruto yawned. "Less talk, more running. Go run 30 laps around the Konoha walls."

Kaoru grumbled under her breath before running off, though progress was sluggish.

It was sundown when she finished running, and she immediately collapsed onto the floor, drenched completely in sweat. Naruto looked up from his novel and gazed upon the pitiful sight, and sighed.

Closing his book and pocketing it, he moved over to her and picked her up. While she protested, he placed her on his back and set off into Konoha.

As he ran across the rooftops, he tilted his head to Kaoru. "Ne, where do you live?" he asked.

"Ah…" she paused, and then began muttering directions and Naruto raised an eyebrow at the mention of her address. Going to where she currently lived, he dropped her off and walked down four doors down the hall and took out a pair of keys.

Kaoru's eyes bulged out when he entered the key into the hole. He turned to see her staring, and grinned. "Funny isn't it?" he commented.

Her brain stopped for a moment, then went back to full time as questions raced through her mind. "Why do you train me so hard?" Kaoru demanded.

Naruto bit his lower lip, and looked around to make sure there was no one around. "I'll tell you in your apartment." Kaoru frowned at this. "Why my apartment?" she asked curiously. "Secrecy…" he muttered as he continued to check if anyone was in the hallway.

Kaoru sighed and mumbled something about 'paranoid freaks' and opened her own apartment door and gestured for him to enter. She closed the door after he had entered and they both sat on a couch. "So, let's try again. Why train me so hard?"

Naruto paused. "In a few years, you will be pitted against our weakest Akatsuki member in a one-on-one battle to the death." Naruto told her.

"Why?"

"We have no use for weak members in Akatsuki, as well as bijuu extracting only being able to take place once a year. If you can beat the Akatsuki member without your demon's assistance, you will take that member's spot in Akatsuki rather than being killed from extraction."

Kaoru stared at the ceiling as she organized her thoughts. "Will you do the same for that Gaara guy?"

Naruto nodded. "He will get the same chance as you do, but you won't be fighting him. It's useless wasting jinchuuriki like that."

She dropped her view to eye level. "So… if I win and kill that member, I get to join and not die…" she paused. "I guess I understand why you're training me so hard then."

Naruto gave her a genuine smile. "There's also another reason. I used to act a lot like you, and I still do. I just don't do it outside the Akatsuki base. With your will and determination, I have no doubt you will be ready to enter Akatsuki when the time comes."

"You really think so?" she asked dubiously.

He grinned in return. "I wouldn't waste my time training you if I didn't think so." He suddenly tensed up when a door slammed.

"Oi, brat!" roared a familiar voice.

"Oh crap, see you tomorrow at 5am sharp!" he managed to say quickly before disappearing into the floor. As soon as he disappeared, the door was kicked open and Kisame entered the room.

"Where's the brat? I smelled him in here!" He looked around and spotted Kaoru.

"Where did he go?" he demanded.

Kaoru shrugged. "He's been in his apartment since we finished training for the day."

Kisame sneered. "You can't fool a shark's sense of smell. What was he doing in here?" he demanded again.

"I TOLD you, he hasn't been in here. He carried me to my apartment, probably why you thought he was in here, because his smell rubbed off." She growled out, trying to restrain her annoyance.

Kisame growled. "I'll let it pass, this time. Next time, I won't take excuses."

He ran out the door and ran further down the hall to Naruto's apartment. Curious, Kaoru followed him. Kisame slowly backed up and brought up his shoulder. Counting to three, he charged the door like a battering ram.

Before he could reach it though, the door swung open and Kisame slid across the newly applied oil and crashed into Masaki's bedroom.

Silence ensued until… "GAH! ERO-BAKA!" Immediately a vicious scuffle followed, ending in a rapid half a minute. A fully dressed Masaki quickly exited the room and glared at Naruto.

"I will not allow any more pranks in the apartment. Understood?"

Naruto sighed. "Alright, geez." He turned to Kaoru. "You may go now." Closing the door, he walked over to the couch and sat down.

"Her training is faster than expected. I'll teach her advanced chakra control after her weight training." Naruto muttered.

Masaki smiled evilly. "How about I help with her… training?"

Naruto shivered. "Ah… I don't think that's necessary, Masaki.

She pouted, but her expression quickly went emotionless. "What's the plan during the third exam?"

Naruto smiled grimly. "We are to ignore any Leaf nin and go straight at the jinchuuriki and Orochimaru. Deidara and Sasori will take care of Orochimaru, so we'll go after Gaara."

"What do I do?" whined Kisame, who had just recovered from unconsciousness.

"You go get your ass back to base and annoy Itachi nii-san instead of us." Naruto replied.

"Ooh that hurt Naruto." Kisame said playfully. "Maybe I should just tie you up and throw you into the hot springs."

Naruto gasped. "You wouldn't dare!"

As the argument went back and forth, Masaki began burning up half in embarrassment at the conversation, and half in anger.

"I'm quite the ladies man!" Kisame boasted. Unfortunately, this sent Masaki over the edge.

"LADIES MAN, EH PERVERT?" she growled severely as she advanced towards the two while cracking her knuckles. Kisame chuckled nervously and backed up, trying to create some distance. Masaki quickly closed the distance and began choking him.

"-choke- See you later -choke- brat!" Kisame managed to spit out before using **Shunshin no Jutsu** to teleport away.

"Damn, he got away…" she mumbled. Naruto slowly backed away. When Masaki turned to glare at him, he immediately ran for his room and slammed the door. Snapping on several locks and setting up some seals, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, a hand slammed through the wall, and Naruto began screaming. His wails were heard around Konoha that night…

* * *

Sorry folks, but as I said, I can't write on the weekdays. I spend a lot of time writing in my notebook with ideas though, and I hope I can keep a schedule of one chapter a week. I got caught in writers' block so it's not as long. I had to dump part of my written story because I had a sudden change of how I wanted to write the story. 

**Reviews**

Thank you **The High Demon Lord** for your review. I'm glad you enjoy the story and I hope you keep reading.

Thank you **sakura li 19** for your review. Yes, Sasuke does not have the curse seal… YET! Mwah, I will go through the Sasuke retrieval arc, but with a TWIST!

Thank you **LbcLostKid** for your review. I'm happy you think that way, as even my own brother and sister say the same thing. :o

Thank you **TimeReaper **for your review. I try to make the chapters longer, and hopefully they will stay longer.

Thank you **Genaric Name** for your review. As you can see, Sasuke and Sakura choose to keep it a secret, because of how they are 'acquaintances' or such now.

Thank you **FFz** for your review. Unfortunately, this ANBU group did not have an Inuzuka tracker, and Kakashi is likely the only one with the nin-dog contract so far.

I thank everyone else for their reviews, and I hope you continue to support me in the future.

Bijuu – Tailed Beast

**Jutsu List**

**Yami Tsuki Henshin (Dark Moon Transformation) - A jutsu that temporarily transforms the user into a half-demon. Regenerating lost chakra and granting physical benefits, the user slowly transforms into a full demon while the jutsu is active. Once dispelled and reused, the 12 hour timer for becoming a full demon restarts, allowing the user to perform it continuously as long as they don't leave it on too long.  
**

**Ninpou: Jujin Bunshin (Ninja Art: Beast Human Clone) - An Inuzuka move that transforms their partner into a clone of themselves and the both of them take on a more bestial appearance.  
**

**Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Four Legs Technique) - A jutsu that increases the user's speed and strength, as well as their nails lengthening into claws. Users travel on four legs like a dog after performing the jutsu.  
**

**Gatsuuga (Double Piercing Fang) - When performed, the user and his partner spin at high speeds and delivery powerful beastlike attacks when the user makes contact with the target. It can be done by a single person, however it is less effective.  
**

**Seishin Utsu (Spirit Strike) - A powerful attack charged with massive amounts of chakra, even the slightest scratch from it can be fatal to the enemy.  
**

**Hakanai Shouri (Fleeting Triumph) - A technique that allows the user to move at high speeds. The more chakra pumped into the jutsu, the faster you go. The secret behind the technique is to slow down time temporarily using massive chakra, allowing the user to move at 'high speed'. This is a demonic jutsu and thus has the ability to slow down time. The technique only applies to taijutsu. Ninjutsu cast or projectiles thrown will move at the slowed speed, but this move is perfect for casting a genjutsu while under the influence of the technique.  
**

**Zankuuha (Decapitating Air Wave) - Through the use of air tubes in their arms, the user can create and control sound waves and air pressure, creating supersonic blasts of air to assault the enemy.  
**

Stay tuned for the next chapter! Chapter 5: Akatsuki and the Finals

Rate and review this chapter, and tell me any errors/suggestions! Ja ne!

A/N: if you haven't noticed, I decided to input indepth descriptions of the jutsus used.


	6. The Finals and Akatsuki

Black Lightning

Chapter 5: Akatsuki and the Finals

----

**Words: **30,691 **Reviews:** 50 **Hits:** 12,713 **Favs:** 62 **Alerts:** 113

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

"**Half Demon**"

"Summon"

* * *

1 week after training start… 

Naruto had left Kaoru to her weight training and was wandering through Konoha, lost in his thoughts, until he suddenly heard a lecherous giggle. He slowly looked around, noticing he was near a hot springs. He tried to pinpoint the noise, when he heard it again.

This time, his ears twitched and he turned to where he was sure that the noise was coming from. He peered into a tree carefully and spotted a large man with long white hair wearing strange-looking red and green clothes.

Naruto sighed, knowing that Masaki would kill him for ignoring to beat up the pervert. Thus, Naruto approached the man quickly and silently. Placing his hands into the tiger seal, he got a strange glint in his eyes as he prepared an ultimate anti-pervert technique.

"**Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu no Ougi: Sennen Goroshi!**" he roared as he stuck his index fingers up the pervert's ass with massive, chakra-enhanced force.

"YEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOWWWW!" the pervert screamed as he flew up in pain while clutching his precious ass. He flew 20 feet into the air, and then gravity caused him to drop like a rock and pulled him down into the hot springs.

Naruto quickly concealed himself in some bushes as some women ran out of the springs, screaming in embarrassment, while the others beat up the poor man severely. When the noise died down, the perverted man slowly came out the door, bruises and bumps covering him entirely. He glared at the bushes where Naruto was hidden.

"Come out now, you damned ass! You interrupted my research, brat!" the man roared.

Naruto grunted. "Tell me who you are before I show myself."

The man grinned foolishly. "I am Jiraiya! He immediately began a strange and embarrassing dance, introducing himself as one of the Leaf's sannin.

Satisfied, Naruto stepped out of the bushes. Immediately, Jiraiya's eyes narrowed. "Akatsuki!" he growled as he stepped forward menacingly. "Not only are you S-Rank criminals out for the bijuu, YOU stuck your fingers up my _ass_! For that, you deserve _Death!_"

Naruto began sweating and immediately took off at top speed, Jiraiya quickly following.

He quickly ran until he reached the outer walls where Kaoru was training. "Kaoru, Kaoru, Kaoru! Save me from the evil pervert! He's trying to force me to take perverted pictures of you!" he lied immediately to create a distraction.

"Pervert, eh?" she said in a cold voice as a strange glint appeared in her eyes just as it did with Naruto. She cracked her knuckles as she walked slowly to Jiraiya.

Said perverted man sweatdropped and began backing up slowly until he noticed the seal on her stomach.

"Wait! You're a jinchuuriki! That man is…"

"Akatsuki. I know that already, old man." Kaoru interrupted rudely.

Jiraiya looked dumbfounded. "Huh? You _know_?"

Kaoru laughed. "Of course I do! After all, I'm joining Akatsuki once I finish my training."

Jiraiya glared at Naruto. "What do you plan to do with the jinchuuriki and their bijuu?"

Said Akatsuki member shrugged. "Only the select few members know that, and I'm not one of them… yet. I wouldn't know, I might ask our leader in exchange for teaching me a jutsu."

Jiraiya frowned. "What's your name? You're pretty young to be a member."

"Uzumaki Naruto. I've been trained since the age of nine by the Akatsuki."

Kaoru immediately went "Huh?" and Jiraiya gasped.

"So you're…" Jiraiya began to talk when Naruto interrupted.

"Kyuubi vessel? The Son of the late Yondaime Hokage, whose name was Kazama Arashi? Yes I am."

"Why are you a traitor to the Leaf? Your father…"

"My father wished me to be viewed as a hero. Instead, everyone saw me as a monster, a demon. I was the target for 23 assassinations, total." Jiraiya looked downcast. "Have you befriended anyone in the village?" he asked curiously.

Naruto nodded slowly. "I've befriended the last Uchiha. Uchiha Sasuke. We already know that Orochimaru is after him and the Sharingan."

"Why haven't you killed Orochimaru then?" Jiraiya demanded.

Naruto's face contorted into rage. "Damn bastard keeps running away! Damn chicken-bastard never fights us, even in one on one combat."

Jiraiya grinned. "That's Orochimaru for you."

"Our next target is the Ichibi container, Sabaku no Gaara. We already have the Sanbi, Kyuubi, and Nibi if you count me and Kaoru." Naruto had an excited gleam in his eyes. "Teach me one of my dad's jutsus, old man."

Jiraiya snorted. "Why should I teach a traitor _anything_?"

Naruto frowned and held his heart in mock pain. "Jiraiya, that hurts. I was a civilian when I left and you know the rules when it comes to that. Also, I'm officially a Leaf Genin with no record of traitorousness, taking the Chuunin Exams Final in one month. You can't really consider me a traitor."

"…" Jiraiya couldn't come up with something to combat what he had just said and decided to ignore it. "What will you and Akatsuki be doing during the finals?"

"I'll tell you if you don't interfere with our plans. If you do, we'll just destroy Konoha. Do I have your word?" Naruto asked. Jiraiya thought for a moment, weighing the consequences. Finally, he gave a short nod.

"After capturing the Ichibi, my partner and I will disappear and leave fake corpses to fake our deaths. Another Akatsuki pair will move in during the invasion and attack Orochimaru during the Exams."

"What do you plan to do with Ichibi?" Jiraiya asked as his curiosity peaked.

"We'll train him like I'm training Kaoru here, and have him join. It's always better to have a stronger member join and already having a bijuu than having a weaker one and having us go through the long process of bijuu extraction and insertion."

Smirking, Jiraiya spoke up. "I'll teach you a technique right now, called **Kuchiyose no Jutsu**. You are familiar with it, I assume. If you can stop Orochimaru and the Ichibi, I'll teach you another technique."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "I'm guessing both are jutsus my dad used. And by stop, I suppose you mean as long as Orochimaru is unable to complete his objectives, such as assassinating Sandaime? I can't guarantee that he'll die, because he probably won't. Chicken-bastard will run again, I'm sure." Naruto glared at the sky. "Stupid chicken-bastard…" he muttered.

Jiraiya nodded and bit his thumb. Smearing it on his hand, he went through a few hand seals. "**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**" He summoned a medium sized toad with a scroll in the toad's mouth. Jiraiya took the scroll and opened it, showing Naruto the signatures.

Naruto then bit his own thumb, and wrote his name in the scroll.

Jiraiya nodded. "You should already know the seals, considering you're of Akatsuki. Try to summon Gamabunta, the toad boss. Just remember, if you betray the Leaf without good reason, Gamabunta can null your contract."

Naruto frowned. '_Damn, that's troublesome… It would do well to get my own summon animals…_' He bit his right thumb and smeared it on his hands, as he went through the seals, and finally slammed his left palm onto the ground.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**" he yelled, as massive amounts of chakra flew forth.

After a gigantic explosion of smoke emerged, the wind blew it away to reveal a humongous tan and red toad with a black jacket.

"Jiraiya! How dare you summon me again after that last incident!" Gamabunta roared, his voice shaking the ground.

Naruto slowly unclenched his teeth and pulled his fingers out of his ears. "Ah… excuse me Gamabunta-sama, but _I_ was the one who summoned you." Naruto explained meekly.

Gamabunta looked up to see Naruto on his head, blonde hair sticking out sorely against rough red skin. "Hmm? What's your name kid?"

Naruto smiled widely. "Uzumaki Naruto, son of Kazama Arashi. I assume you know him." Gamabunta nodded.

"Yeah I knew him. Total blockhead, but he was very strong. Anyway, I'd have you drink with me to finalize the contract and letting you summon me any old time, but by the looks of it, you're underage. Not that I care, but what would the village do if you happen to become drunk?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "I'd probably go insane and wreak mass havoc," he admitted.

The large toad's mouth crinkled into a small smile. "As long as you don't summon me for any stupid reasons, I'll be there. Ja ne!" Gamabunta said before disappearing.

"What? GAH!" Naruto yelled out in surprise as he suddenly found himself falling. '_Damn, did he really have to leave so suddenly?_' he thought, annoyed. Charging chakra into his feet, he flipped a few times in the air before landing hard onto the floor. "Damn, that hurt…" he mumbled.

Jiraiya walked over to Naruto. "I'll teach you the beginnings of the next jutsu, the Rasengan. I won't show you the final by product, or you might master it on your own and might feel that you need not uphold your side of the bargain…"

Shaking his fist in the air, Naruto growled. "I may be Akatsuki, but I'm definitely not a backstabber! Once I give my word, I stick to it!"

Sighing, Jiraiya waved it off. "Whatever, I'll teach you the rest after the Final Exams." He then took a balloon out of his pocket and filled it with water. "Watch closely," he ordered. "Spin the water with your chakra and pop the balloon." Jiraiya demonstrated what to do, and as the chakra began rotating, the ball began to bulge and quickly popped.

'_Hmm… spinning the chakra in one direction wouldn't create those multiple bulges… what if I applied quick changing of rotation…_' Naruto thought as Jiraiya shuffled around his pocket for another balloon.

"Aha!" the sannin declared when he found what he was looking for. He filled up the balloon and handed it to Naruto.

Naruto took the balloon and began spinning the water. '_Yes, I see that it is bulging in one direction… Time to apply the other rotations…_' he thought happily. Naruto continued spinning until it was at a speed he liked, and quickly changed the direction of the rotation while keeping the speed. After changing the direction of rotation several more times, the ball bulged up as Jiraiya's had done and popped.

Jiraiya gaped in surprise at the balloon. '_The first step mastered in five minutes… This guy has good control and a good eye._' He grumbled loudly as he shuffled through his pocket again, this time withdrawing two small rubber balls.

"By the way, how did you complete it so fast?" Jiraiya asked nonchalantly as he juggled the balls a bit.

"My chakra control is at the equivalent or better than a Hyuuga's. It comes naturally when you train with Akatsuki for as long as I have."

The sannin nodded seriously. '_He observational skill is unmatched, I can tell. He watched how the chakra in the balloon worked and imitated it perfectly._' Jiraiya looked thoughtful. "I'll teach you step two right now. Say, I'll make a bet with you. If you can do it under thirty minutes, I'll teach you a third jutsu after the exams."

Naruto instantly brightened up, a foxy grin appearing on his face.

This time, Jiraiya held the air filled balloon in his hand. He began concentrating chakra into the ball, until it exploded. He turned to Naruto. "In this exercise, you must concentrate as much chakra as possible into the ball without the chakra touching the edge, lest it open a hole and all the air leak out."

Naruto took the second rubber ball from Jiraiya and stared at it for a bit. He tried to collect some chakra, but soon afterward a hole appeared and the air leaked out. Stumped, Naruto sat on the floor and pondered the best way to pop the ball, while Jiraiya shuffled around his pouch looking for another one.

'_He was concentrating chakra… around one specific point, like a ball… If I had a visual to concentrate on, it'd be much easier._'

Naruto accepted another rubber ball from Jiraiya and closed his eyes slowly. '_In the center of the mind… visualize a point… Kyuubi's eye… concentrate and focus the chakra around the eye…_' he told himself.

He could feel the chakra wrapping itself around the eye, or in the real world, the center of the ball. Continuing to focus on the eye, he put more effort into concentration. '_Compact it into a ball of chakra… compact it smaller…_' Naruto suddenly heard a pop. Opening his eyes, he saw the remains of the rubber ball on the floor.

Jiraiya rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he watched Naruto master the second stage of the Rasengan. '_He's mastered two steps in one day. Mastering the first in five and the second in fifteen minutes. You sure have one hell of a son, Arashi._'

Naruto smiled at his accomplishment, but it soon transformed into a frown when he felt killing intent directed at the both of them.

"Are you two going to ignore me all day or will I have to force you to explain yourselves?" Kaoru asked menacingly, patience at an end.

Naruto smiled weakly. "So sorry. I'll explain everything later, you go back to weight training Kaoru."

She huffed angrily but returned to her training nevertheless. Jiraiya sighed as she stalked off and turned his attention back to Naruto. "About the Exams, I'll be hiding in the crowd using a combination of disguise, Henge, and genjutsu. You can tell your _partners_ that I'll help them against Orochimaru if necessary."

Nodding silently, Naruto opened a link to Sasori, Deidara, and Masaki.

"_Yo, this is Fox. I've had a run-in with Jiraiya, and he says he'll support us against Orochimaru as long as we don't demolish Konoha in the process._"

"_This is Clay. That makes things so much easier, yeah._"

"_Puppet. Masaki, have you received leader's special demon containment seal?_" Sasori asked.

"_Thunder, and yeah I did. If the Ichibi tries to transform, I'll just slap it onto either him or his sand and it'll force him to revert and waste all his chakra._"

"_Why'd you speak with Jiraiya anyway, yeah?_"

"_He caught me by surprise. He's promised to teach me a jutsu, and if we stop Orochimaru he'll teach me the Rasengan._"

"_Rasengan… Nice catch there, yeah._"

"_Should we have Itachi nii-san and Kisame-san patrol the forest and take out the summoners?_" Naruto asked his team.

There was a pause before Sasori spoke up. "_Yes… have them do that. It'll keep me from having to massacre useless Sound nin left and right and I'll be able to focus on Orochimaru._"

"_Sounds good, yeah._"

"_I'll take the jinchuuriki, Naruto you take any shinobi that try to protect him._"

"_Roger that, Masaki. This is Fox, cutting the link._"

Naruto looked up from his chat and found Jiraiya staring at him. "Telepathic links. Standard Akatsuki jutsu used to communicate with each other," he explained. "I've told them, and they've agreed. We're having another Akatsuki pair come and attack their summoners during the summoning process."

"Summoners?" Jiraiya asked curiously.

Nodding, Naruto pointed to a nearby forest. "In the forests, Sound and Sand shinobi will be summoning large snakes to be used against the Konoha walls. Inform Sandaime of our plans and have him order all shinobi to refrain from attacking us."

"Alright, so long as you keep your bargain, everything will roll smoothly. Best of luck to you, Naruto." Jiraiya then disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves, leaving Naruto alone in the field.

He sighed, when he recognized an approaching chakra signature to be Kaoru. "Oi, don't tell me you're done with training already?" he drawled.

She shook her head. "Not yet, but since it is _later…_ explain."

Naruto deadpanned. "Later doesn't really mean fifteen minutes…"

Heatedly glaring at him, Kaoru refused to move.

"…" He stared at her for a while and sighed. "Alright, alright, I'll explain. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, born in Konoha. My father, the Yondaime, sealed the Kyuubi in me, and the villagers were out for my blood for the better part of every year. Finally I got fed up and left with Itachi nii-san and here I am now. I went by an alias so that no-one could recognize me."

Kaoru sweatdropped. "Ok…" Naruto glared at her. "Back to training before I decide to up those weights!" he screeched.

"Ack!" she yelled as she immediately ran off to what she was doing earlier. She made a silent and solemn promise to get her revenge on him one day in the future…

* * *

One month later… 

Naruto got up lazily and yawned loudly. He stood up groggily and looked in the mirror. Neck length disheveled hair met his eyes. Sighing, he took a quick shower and complained loudly when he discovered that Masaki had used up all the hot water already. Walking over to the table, he groaned when he found that she had eaten the last of the cereal as well.

Looking at the clock, he grunted.

"_Masaki, are you there?_" he asked.

"_Yeah, you should hurry up. One minute until the exam starts._"

Naruto grinned as he waited that last minute. '_3… 2… 1…_' performing **Shunshin no Jutsu** he disappeared from the apartment…

* * *

Shiranui Genma looked at his watch. '_3… 2… 1…_' Immediately before the time ran out, Naruto appeared in a pillar of bright flames. Seeing this, Genma smirked. "Che, flashy entrance. At least you're here on time." Naruto quickly waved off the comment. 

Genma coughed and looked up at the crowd. "Alright, let the Final Chuunin Selection Exam, begin!"

Clearing his throat, he looked at the contestants. "First match, Hyuuga Neji and Amatsuyochi Masaki. The rest of you, go up the stairs to the competitors' box. You can watch from there and wait your turn."

As the other contestants left, Neji and Masaki went to opposite sides of the arena.

Neji glared at Masaki. "You should forfeit now, for fate has already shown me that I will win this match." Masaki just yawned at this. "There's no way a weakling like _you_ can defeat me! Heki's going to enjoy this." She tapped the katana strapped to her waist lovingly.

Genma grimaced and stared at Neji. '_Che, crazy Hyuuga. He should know better than to provoke a female, especially of her caliber._' "Let the match, begin!"

Masaki began by immediately throwing three clay shuriken that she had received from Deidara earlier. Neji smirked and easily dodged, turning his Byakugan on during the process while the shuriken hit the wall behind him. Masaki then pulled out explosive kunai. "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" Two Kage Bunshins appeared on either side of him. All three chucked their kunai at him, forcing him into defense.

"**Hakkeshou: Kaiten!**" Spinning while expelling chakra, Neji managed to make a Kaiten large enough to avoid damage from the ensuing explosions. Sneering, Neji taunted her. "Is that all you've got, weakling?"

The two Masaki Kage Bunshins rushed in, katanas drawn. He ducked under them and destroyed them, only to see the real Masaki rushing in. Neji smirked, when suddenly a pair of hands burst forth from the ground and grabbed onto his feet, immobilizing him.

Surprised, his attention was distracted long enough for Masaki to shove a chakra-enforced punch into his gut.

The Hyuuga 'prodigy' flew across the arena and slammed into the wall, right next to the shuriken that he had dodged earlier. Hearing his opponent snicker, he turned and glared. "What the hell are you laughing at, loser? I shall win!"

She sighed. "I'm laughing at your _stupidity_, because I have already won." Making a hand seal, she shoved chakra into the clay shurikens, activating them. Exploding in a massive explosion, Neji screamed in pain and dropped to the floor heavily injured and unconscious.

As the medics rushed onto the scene, Genma grinned. "That stuck-up idiot finally got what he deserved. Winner, Amatsuyochi Masaki!"

Up in the stands, the 'Kazekage' narrowed his eyes. '_This does not bode well for my plans…_' "Impressive strategy. I have no doubt that she is Chuunin material, Hokage-dono.

The Sandaime nodded. '_Jiraiya said the attack would start during Sabaku no Gaara's match…_' "Her moves were planned to perfection, " he agreed.

After Masaki went back to the competitors' box and the medics had carted off Neji, Genma cleared his throat. "The next match will be between Uchiha Sasuke and Sabaku no Kankuro."

Said puppeteer began sweating. '_Shit, I can't reveal the gimmick I put in Karasu before the attack…_' "I forfeit!" he called out. Sasuke gave him a death glare, as the crowd began booing.

Genma shrugged. "Alright then, winner is Uchiha Sasuke. The next match is between Nara Shikamaru and Sabaku no Temari."

Temari immediately flew down on her fan, while Shikamaru groaned. "Oh man, how troublesome! I have to fight a _woman_."

"Shikamaru! Get down here!" Genma yelled.

Sweating, Shikamaru began thinking of a solution. '_Aw dammit, why did he have to forfeit? That's it! I could forfeit this match and…_'

Naruto whacked Shikamaru hard on the back, sending him toppling over the edge and into the arena. "Go for it, you lazy bum!" he roared.

'_Takai… I WILL kill you…_' Shikamaru thought angrily as he picked himself up from the ground.

Temari frowned. "You going to give up too?"

He sighed. "It's too troublesome to back out now." Genma smirked. "Alright then, let the match begin!"

Immediately, Temari lashed out with her fan. "**Kamaitachi no Jutsu!**" A blast of air rushed at Shikamaru, who immediately ran to the nearby trees.

'_God damn, this is so troublesome!_' he thought as he put his arms over his head, shielding himself slightly from the bombardment. '_Geez… the fan is huge so it must weigh a lot. Considering she wields it like nothing, she probably has inhuman strength as well… This is so troublesome._' Shikamaru looked up at the sky. '_All I ever wanted to be was an average ninja with an average life…_'

Meanwhile, Temari was getting angrier. "Are you going to hide all day? Come out and show yourself, you big SISSY!" She began bombarding the tree area again, increasing the ferocity of the attack.

'_Sheesh, I suppose I should do something about this…_' Putting his hands together in his trademark thinking form, he closed his eyes as he concentrated. '_Let's see… today is cloudless so that's not good… she probably will run from my shadows… what could I use to beat her?_' He frowned to himself. He suddenly brightened. '_I have an idea!_' Quickly taking out several kunai, explosive tags, and taking off his jacket, he arranged his new weaponry in front of him. Outfitting four kunai with explosive tags, he tied his jacket to one of the exploding kunai. The rest he kept without tags. '_Show time…_'

Temari growled in frustration. '_When is he going to show?_' As if to answer her question, kunai flew from the wooded area in her general direction. She took out her fan and blocked them, when he spotted more kunai coming at her. As the weaponry drew close, her eyes widened. '_Oh my god, exploding kunai!_' she quickly began dodging, as the explosions sent lots of smoke into the sky.

Unbeknownst to her as she flailed in the smoke, a shadow quickly moved from the trees to Temari's general location. The shadow grabbed onto her, and she suddenly couldn't move. '_Dammit, what the hell?_' she thought frantically.

"**Kagemane no Jutsu** is a success." Shikamaru said, as he stood up, jacketless. Walking over to the center of the arena, Temari couldn't resist the effects of the jutsu as she, too, began walking forward.

He stopped when Temari was twenty feet away and smirked. "How are you going to beat me when I can follow your every move?" she taunted. This made Shikamaru laugh. "Why don't I show you exactly how I'll be able to defeat you?"

He turned his head up, and Temari did as he did. She opened her mouth in a shocked expression, as the exploding kunai hanging on his jacket drifted closer and closer to her position.

"Forfeit now and you won't get hurt." He threatened.

She struggled futilely for a bit, then sighed. "Alright, I forfeit." As soon as she said this, the shadow retracted and Shikamaru left the arena, smile plastered on his face all the while. '_That was a good battle. I didn't get hurt, I won, and I don't need to worry anymore…_'

* * *

Kisame snorted as he walked slowly through the woods. '_The gaki should be fighting next, I should hurry up and get rid of those pesky summoners…_' Walking through the heavily forested area, he saw a group of people sitting on the floor in a circle, each holding a scroll. '_Jackpot._' He thought with an evil grin. "**Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu.**" Kisame muttered under his breath. Kisame began going through seals, and performed another jutsu. "**Mizu-Zuutai Bunshin no Jutsu.**" 

He and his body clone began going through rapid-fire seals while his water clone took watch. After finishing their seals, Kisame began converting his chakra into masses of water. He finished after he had a large lake full of water. Grinning, he and his clone announced their jutsu.

"**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu! Suiton: Suikoudan no Jutsu!**"

The resulting whirlwind of water crashed through the shinobi, destroying their summoning process and distracting them. Using this, the shark rushed forth and began to demolish the shinobi one by one until all were dead. Kisame frowned. "To think, even Sand and Sound shinobi aren't any fun to play with. Ah well, let's see how Itachi-san did…"

* * *

Indeed, Itachi was doing very well. As he moved stealthily through the woods, he came upon another group of summoners. '_Pity, they need scrolls to summon an animal because their chakra reserves are so low. I should end their pitiful lives._' "**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu,**" he whispered. Around twenty or so Itachi clones came to life in a circle around the clearing. When he gave the signal, all of them began bombarding the summoners with exploding kunai. In seconds, the group of summoners was dead and gave reason enough for Itachi to sigh. '_Even Naruto could've given me a better fight than these supposed 'jounin'. Thinking of which, how is he?_'

* * *

Genma looked up at the box where the other competitors stayed. "The next match is… Hayai Takai against Sabaku no Gaara." Immediately, whispers broke out as people began wondering who would win. Shikamaru glanced around and said something that one would never expect him to say: "Anyone up for a bet? I'm betting 2500 yen that Takai will win." 

Sasuke coughed. "I'll uh… bet 2400 yen on Takai."

"2600 yen on Gaara." Kankuro said confidently. "Gaara's never lost before."

"Neither has Takai." Kabuto interrupted. "I'm placing 2500 yen on Takai."

Kankuro frowned. "What is this, team up on Gaara day?"

Shikamaru shook his head. "Takai is _very_ strong. I doubt none of us even know the extent of his strength."

Looking worried, Kankuro turned his attention back onto the arena, where Naruto and Gaara had just entered. '_You'd better win Gaara, for our sakes._'

'_This should be good…_' Genma thought to himself. "Let the match, begin!"

Naruto stared unfeelingly at Gaara, while Gaara did the same.

"I _will_ have your blood today." Gaara said coldly. Naruto sneered. "No, I will have your _defeat_!" This set Gaara on edge, and his sand prepared itself for the worst.

Naruto quickly took out explosive kunai and threw them at Gaara. Sand rushing forward, Gaara's defense intercepted the kunai. The explosion rocked the stadium, and in the ensuing smoke, Naruto disappeared from sight. A bird in the sky chirped, when suddenly several Narutos burst from the ground around Gaara and ran forward to engage in taijutsu.

While the sand was preoccupied, another Naruto burst up in front of Gaara. He was about to land a punch, when the sand turned its attention back to him and grabbed onto him. The redhead sneered. "**Sabaku Kyuu!**" The sand around Naruto tightened. "**Sabaku Souso!**" Naruto screamed in pain and everyone flinched as they heard the cracking of bones.

Gaara brought Naruto up to his face and grinned ferally. "You are weak."

Naruto smirked, before exploding in a grandiose fireball. Another Naruto emerged from the ground several meters away. "**Bunshin Daibakuha,**" he muttered. Gaara snarled, injured from the close range explosion.

Clenching a fist, sand rushed forth at Naruto, who stood motionless. At the last second, he flipped back several meters and performed a dragon seal. He yelled, "Gravity seals, **KAI!**"

Naruto crouched down and disappeared from sight, reappearing next to Gaara. Before the sand could react, Naruto crushed Gaara in the chest with a powerful, chakra-enforced blow. Sending Gaara flying across the arena, time slowed down around Naruto. Sprinting at top speed, he appeared once again next to Gaara, and slammed another chakra punch, this time in the gut.

Sand armor flying off, Gaara slammed into a wall. He got up, with an insane glint in his eyes. Performing a single seal, his sand formed a spherical barrier around himself.

Kankuro and Temari, watching from the competitors' box, gasped. '_Oh crap, the signal hasn't come yet you idiot!_' the two of them thought. Up in the Kage's booth, the Kazekage narrowed his eyes, and then flickered his vision to Kabuto, who nodded.

Immediately, Kabuto went through a few silent seals and smirked. "**Nemurihane,**" he whispered. As soon as he whispered those words, feathers began raining from the sky, and many in the stadium fell asleep.

Back in the arena, Naruto smirked. "IT'S SHOW TIME!" he roared, as Masaki jumped from the box and zoomed in to Gaara. Barely avoiding the spikes that shot out of the barrier, she managed to get the seal on the shield, which in turn caused Gaara to begin screaming.

Up in the Kage's booth, the Kazekage shot up and was behind the Hokage in a second, kunai drawn. "What is the meaning of this, Kazekage?" Sandaime asked.

"Oh? Don't tell me you don't recognize your old student, Sarutobi-sensei?" the man said.

Sandaime grinned. "Orochimaru. It's been a while since I've seen you."

"Today will be your death, sensei!" Orochimaru rasped. "Jumping into the air, the two of them landed on the roof of the booth, while the Sound Four cast a barrier around the roof. Sandaime smirked. "There is one thing you haven't taken into account, Orochimaru." The sannin raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what is that?"

A white haired man appeared behind Orochimaru. "You forgot about me, Orochimaru-teme." Jiraiya growled.

Orochimaru sneered. "This is it? This is all I haven't taken into account?" At this, the Sandaime laughed. "No, there is yet one more."

"Have you missed us, Orochimaru?" A quiet voice next to Orochimaru mumbled. The black haired sannin whirled around, and his eyes widened. "Sasori! Deidara!" he snarled.

Indeed, the red haired Sasori and the blonde Deidara stood in front of Orochimaru, in their customary Akatsuki cloaks. "Your plan is doomed to fail, traitor. Today, you will meet with death." Sasori said in a deadly voice, as he summoned his prized puppet, the Sandaime Kazekage. "They don't call me Akasuna no Sasori for nothing." Deidara smiled cheerfully. "Naruto-kun and Masaki-chan are already taking care of the Ichibi, yeah. Itachi-san and Kisame took care of your summoners as well, yeah."

Orochimaru roared. "How dare you interfere with my plans? Even to the extent of having six members in one area!"

Smiling, Jiraiya stepped forward. "As long as you're dead, we don't really care how many Akatsuki members are in the vicinity, Orochimaru."

"You'll pay! **Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei!**" A box labeled 'First' shot from the roof tiling. Then, a second box labeled 'Second' shot up.

'_Shit!_' was the thought that ran through all four of them. As the last box labeled 'Fourth' shot up, it was stopped by an invisible force, and retreated back into the floor.

Sighing in relief, Sandaime threw off his Kage robes, revealing full battle armor. "Let's dance, Orochimaru!" With that, the battle started.

* * *

Whilst Sasori and Deidara duke it out and Itachi and Kisame ran around killing summoners, Masaki and Naruto faced down the wailing Gaara, still in pain. Taking one step, Kankuro, Temari, and their jounin sensei Baki dropped down in front of Gaara. 

"**Chidori!**" yelled a familiar voice. All turned to see a fast approaching Uchiha Sasuke, his left hand ablaze with lightning chakra.

Kankuro quickly grabbed Gaara and sidestepped, but the high-powered jutsu clipped his leg, causing him to grunt and fall onto his good leg. Smirking, Sasuke turned to Naruto and Masaki. "Go for it!" he yelled, as he turned around and began assaulting Temari.

While Naruto fought against Baki, Masaki sped past to engage Kankuro and Gaara, and ultimately capture Gaara. Baki, a wind manipulator, quickly tried to slash at Naruto with a blade of wind, but without his weights, Naruto's speed was too great. Quickly knocking Baki unconscious, he turned to where Masaki had just crushed Kankuro's puppet and thrown him against the wall.

Seal still stuck on Gaara, Naruto hoisted the now unconscious jinchuuriki onto his shoulder and teleported to their rendezvous point using **Shunshin no Jutsu**. After the whirlwind of leaves died down, Naruto quickly handed Gaara over to Kisame, who left immediately to the Akatsuki base.

"How is my foolish little brother doing, Naruto?" Itachi asked curiously.

Naruto smirked. "He isn't so foolish any more, Itachi nii-san."

A small smile appeared on Itachi's face. "Good, I'm glad he has his priorities straightened, even if it did take five years." Naruto looked curiously at Itachi. "How is Kaoru doing, Itachi nii-san?" Itachi frowned. "Let's just say we're never letting her in the kitchen again. EVER." Naruto snickered, and Itachi sent him a death glare. "If you ever let Kaoru know I said that, you'll wish you never spoke again. Let's head back to base, I have no doubt that Sasori and Deidara are fine."

And fine they were. Sasori's puppet easily occupied the revived Shodaime and Nidaime, whereas Deidara was busy chucking clay bird after clay bird at a quickly tiring Orochimaru.

In the background, Jiraiya went through hand seals in preparation for a jutsu and Sandaime was transforming Enma, the monkey king into a staff.

"**Doton: Yomi Numa!**" Jiraiya yelled, causing the spot of Orochimaru's landing to turn into a small swamp. While he was immobilized, Sandaime jumped into the air, staff held high. "This is it, Orochimaru!" he roared.

Cursing, Orochimaru went quickly through hand seals. "**Kusanagi no Tsurugi!**" Taking the sword, he parried Sandaime's horizontal strike, and pushed him away.

Deidara cheered, causing Orochimaru to look his way. "We captured the Ichibi, yeah. All that's left is to kill the traitor, yeah!" Narrowing his eyes, Orochimaru created a mud clone and replaced himself with it, and ran towards the edge of the barrier.

"Don't let him get away!" Sasori shouted, as he summoned more puppets to deal with the Hokages, leaving the Sandaime Kazekage puppet free to attack Orochimaru. As he ran to the edge, the Sound Four withdrew the barrier, and all five of them jumped, but not before the Kazekage puppet utilized the Iron Sand ability to hit Orochimaru.

Hissing in pain, Orochimaru teleported a safe distance away, where Kabuto awaited him. "Quickly, I was hit by the Iron Sand, Kabuto!" Nodding, Kabuto immediately went to work, healing what he could.

* * *

Back at the roof… 

Sasori frowned as Sandaime's Kage Bunshins sealed the two Hokages into themselves, and dispelled. "Damn, he got away again. The least the Iron Sand can do is clog his tenketsus, but still, that'll be helpful for when we meet him again in the long run."

Turning to Jiraiya and Sandaime, he bowed. "It was a pleasure fighting with you against the traitor. Naruto will be waiting for you here." He said handing over a map with a designated point. "You can teach him the jutsus there, away from prying eyes." Bowing once again, Deidara and Sasori took their leave on a large clay bird.

As the bird disappeared from sight, Jiraiya looked back at the map. "Hmm… somewhere near Stone Country. Anyways, I'll be taking a bit of leave to fulfill my end of the bargain sensei."

"What exactly was that bargain?" Sandaime asked curiously.

"I promised to teach 'Naruto' a few of his dad's jutsus, if he promised to stop Orochimaru's assassination attempt on you and screw his plans of destroying Konoha. Both of which were accomplished."

Sandaime raised an eyebrow. "Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto?"

The sannin nodded. "Yeah, he already knows his heritage. He left with Itachi and they both joined the S-Rank criminal organization called Akatsuki."

"If that was his choice, then I will respect it. I doubt that even _I_ could live with that much hatred against me for eight long years." Sandaime said gravely.

"Yeah, he has every right to hate Konoha." Jiraiya agreed. Looking out upon Konoha, he smiled. "The damage was minimal, and so were the casualties."

Sandaime smiled. "For that, we can thank Akatsuki."

"Yes…" Jiraiya looked at the setting sun. "One day, we'll get him. We'll get Orochimaru, and when that day comes, he'll wish he had never betrayed Konoha."

The Hokage of Konoha turned to face Jiraiya, outlined against the sun. "The will of fire lives on in Konoha's new generation of shinobi. Most of all, I can see it burns brightly in Naruto. As long as that will of fire exists, Konoha shall _never_ fall!"

* * *

Oh my God! I had half of the chapter written down on paper, and the other half I came up on the spot over the course of 2-3 hours. Madness. I've also decided to include Jutsu ranks as well as descriptions of the jutsu (Easier to understand what the hell it does). I've thought up a bit ahead, and I've got a little _surprise_ planned, heheh. 

**Reviews**

Thank you **TrapedSoul** for your review. I'm glad you like the story, even if I can only update once a week.

Thank you **lightningstrxu** for your review. Thanks for catching that mistake. And I wonder whom would you consider OOC?

Thank you **LbcLostKid** for your review. You have been a faithful reader, starting since the Precious Person times (Which I really hope I get to update some day). I'll try my best to update sooner.

Thank you **Genesis D. Rose** for your review. In the next chapter or later than that, I'll set up a vote between three OC's. Yes, three. There is one I have not yet introduced, but it will be female.

Thank you **m-painn **for your review. I know several fanfictions where Naruto joins Akatsuki. One for example is 'New Cause' and a few others, but none of them are complete. 'New Cause' is a completed series, and let me tell you, it's hella awesome.

Thank you **sasuke1342** for your review. I try really hard to keep spelling and grammar mistakes to a minimum. I read fanfics as well and I always get disgusted at how badly they chop up the grammar and spelling sometimes.

Thank you **BloodRenevant **and **Narutorules** for your reviews. I'm also satisfied that they are long enough, as I hate fanfics that have 16 chapters and 5,000 words. Short chapters aren't specific enough, or go too fast.

**Vocabulary**

Sanbi – Three Tailed Demon

_Hekireki_ –_Thunderclap_: Masaki's katana

Karasu – Crow: Kankuro's favorite puppet

Gravity seals – These are seals that become weighted when activated. This is the practical version of Rock Lee's weights, where one needs only to perform a single seal to deactivate all five weights on the body: two legs, two arms, waist.

Kai – Release

Akasuna no Sasori – Sasori of the Red Sand

Shodaime – First

Nidaime – Second

Tenketsu – Chakra point

1 U.S. Dollar 117.50 Japanese Yen

**Jutsu List**

**Konohagakure Hiden: Taijutsu no Ougi: Sennen Goroshi (Hidden Leaf Secret: Supreme Taijutsu Technique: One Thousand Years of Death) Rank depends on severity of asspoke – The user forcefully plunges their index fingers into their opponent's ass, causing severe constipation.**

**Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique) C-Rank – The user bites his/her finger (preferably thumb as it's easiest) and smears it on his/her hand. The user than goes through hand seals and summons their specific animal. Summoned animals depend on the summoning scroll and how much chakra you put into the jutsu. Each race of summoned animals has their own Boss animal, which requires the most chakra to summon.**

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique) B-Rank – The advanced version of the Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique), this jutsu creates a solid clone that can actually perform jutsu and damage their opponent, compared to the illusion of the Bunshin no Jutsu. Once the technique is dispelled, all the memories and actions of the clone are transmitted back to the user, making the Kage Bunshin a versatile infiltration technique. Unlike other clones though, the user's chakra is split evenly between each clone, thus allowing the real one to not be detected by the Byakugan.**

**Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Trigram Palms Heavenly Spin) Clan Technique – The user emits chakra from their hands and spins in such a fashion that the chakra expels itself and rotates at high speed to deflect attacks. This is a Hyuuga-only jutsu.**

**Kamaitachi no Jutsu (Cutting Whirlwind Technique) C-Rank – A move that requires the user to swing a large fan, creating large gusts of wind mixed with chakra, giving the wind a sharp edge. The wind can repel weapons, jutsu, and even sound waves back at their origins.**

**Kagemane no Jutsu (Shadow Imitation Technique) Clan Technique – The user sends out a shadow that can be modified in width and length as long as the surface area is the same, to latch onto the enemy's shadow and immobilize them, forcing them to copy the users' motions.**

**Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu (Water Clone Technique) C-Rank – The user converts water into a clone, which can perform jutsu and deal damage like a shadow clone. Unfortunately, they can only stay active a certain distance from the user and have 1/10 of the user's normal chakra. Users like Hoshigaki Kisame and the Nidaime (Second Hokage) can convert their own chakra into water.**

**Mizu-Zuutai Bunshin no Jutsu (Water-body Clone Technique) B-Rank – Unlike the conventional water clone, these clones are at full power. Like the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu the user's chakra is evenly split amongst clones.**

**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu (Water Element: Great Waterfall Technique) A-Rank – The user uses lots of water to create a cyclone of raging liquid that can have enough strength to rip out trees from the earth.**

**Suiton: Suikoudan no Jutsu (Water Element: Water Shark Blast Technique) A-Rank – A powerful attack that creates a large water shark that bashes and tears apart the enemy with extreme force and prejudice, as well as hiding under the water and waiting to attack.**

**Sabaku Kyuu (Desert Coffin) Jinchuuriki – A move in which Gaara grabs and holds the opponent with dense sand.**

**Sabaku Souso (Desert Funeral) Jinchuuriki – After wrapping an opponent in sand, Gaara can cause the sand to implode and crush whomever or whatever is inside the coffin. Death comes so quickly that there is no pain. Gaara can control pressures, allowing him to break bones if he feels it necessary.**

**Bunshin Daibakuha (Clone Great Explosion) A-Rank – Used in conjunction with the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, the user creates a shadow clone that will explode on command, killing or injuring the victim.**

**Nemurihane (Feathery Sleep) ? Rank – This move is a genjutsu technique in which the user targets a mass of people and puts them to sleep.**

**Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei (Summoning: Impure World Resurrection) S-Rank – The user sacrifices a living human to summon and revive the dead. The summoned person cannot be killed and is under the user's total control when a certain seal is applied.**

**Chidori (One Thousand Birds) A-Rank – Hatake Kakashi's only original move, the user channels a large concentration of chakra to the user's arm. There is so much chakra that it becomes visible to the naked eye. It emits a noise similar to a thousand birds chirping, and is used by moving at high speed in a straight line, and combined with the Sharingan, is a formidable jutsu.**

**Doton: Yomi Numa (Earth Element: Swamp of the Underworld) A-Rank – This technique turns the land into a sinking swampland, making it impossible to move in. The size of the swamp is proportionate to the amount of chakra used.**

**Kusanagi no Tsurugi (Kusanagi: Long Sword of the Heavens) B-Rank – When performed, a snake comes out of the user's mouth, and the Kusanagi blade emerges from the snake's mouth. The blade can lengthen itself to massive lengths, and is indestructible.**

**A/N: The difference between Pain and Death is Gurushi (Pain) and Goroshi (Death). Mistaken by fansubbers as 'One Thousand Years of _Pain_', the true name is Death instead of Pain. **

Be on the lookout for the next chapter. Chapter 6: Betrayal and the Light

Rate and review this latest chapter, and don't forget to pass on some constructive criticism! Ja ne D.


	7. Betrayal, the Creation of the Light

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 6: Betrayal and the Light

----

**Words:** 36,767 **Hits:** 16,449 **Reviews:** 66 **Favs:** 73 **Alerts:** 122

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

"**Half Demon**"

"Summon"

* * *

Three days after the attack… 

Naruto sighed, as he stared at the sky, watching the clouds slowly move across his vision. '_So. Damn. Bored!_' he thought, frustrated. '_There hasn't been anything to do since the attack. Itachi nii-san is training Kaoru in ninjutsu, and Kisame is training Gaara, in taijutsu no less._'

Sighing for what must have been his 1,352nd sigh, he sat up and opened a mental link to an unknown person.

"_Akira, status on the supplies?_"

"_Naruto-san, we have met our quota on supplies. Would you like us to stock extras?_"

"_Yes, do so Akira. How is the search?_"

"_We have 150, and growing. Loyalty is not a problem._"

"_I knew it was a good idea to put you in charge, Akira._"

"_Thank you for your recognition, Naruto-san. I shall oversee the tower now._"

"_I will speak to you in a week. Ja ne._"

"Yo!" someone cried out as he entered the clearing. "I got lost and I only just found the place!"

Naruto turned around and glared at Jiraiya. "Do you know how boring it gets when I have nothing to do for several hours?"

Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Eheh, the map was a bit… vague. Anyway, I'm here to teach you Rasengan's third and final step. We'll talk about that third jutsu after you master Rasengan."

"Alright then, how do I master it?" Naruto asked straight off the bat.

Jiraiya held out a hand, as a ball of swirling chakra appeared in his palm. "You combine the first and second steps of Rasengan. Rotation and power, you combine these two and you get this." He suddenly lashed out at a three-meter wide tree with the Rasengan, blowing the entire tree off.

Staring wide-eyed at the attack, Naruto smiled widely. "That's some kick-ass jutsu! It's got to be A-Rank at the least with that much destructive power."

Jiraiya nodded. "Unlike Kakashi's Chidori, meant to stab and rip through the enemy, Rasengan grinds, and when I say grind, I mean it. If you put enough strength into it, you could rearrange someone's bowels with that much rotation and grinding."

"So… I combine rotation with power?" Jiraiya nodded. "I won't tell you much more. The trick to mastering jutsus is to find out how to master it yourself, otherwise you don't truly understand how the jutsu works."

Naruto held out his hand, and began concentrating the chakra. '_Think of the eye, think of the eye, concentrate chakra into the center…_' Chakra began gathering in his palm in a spiral shape, and Naruto grinned. '_Next step, add rotation while keeping it in its spherical shape._'

Sweating from the extreme focus, Naruto fought to keep the chakra in a ball. '_Damn, this is harder than it looks._ _I have to compress the ball while rotating it; otherwise the chakra will flow out of range and be wasted…_ _If it wasn't for the extreme chakra control exercises that Itachi nii-san made me go through, I wouldn't have enough control to compress the chakra like this while spinning._'

"Ugh, this is annoying!" Naruto complained, as he continued to attempt at compressing the chakra.

Jiraiya nodded. "It took your father three years to create this, and it took me a year to master it. It's quite difficult, but I believe you can set a record on mastering Rasengan."

"You really believe that I can do it?" Naruto asked.

"I've got some serious faith in your abilities, Naruto. Don't let me down."

Naruto grinned. "As if I would, Jiraiya."

Attention returning to the chakra in his hand, he grimaced. Closing his eyes, he set all the concentration and patience bestowed upon him through years of training and putting up with Kisame's temper tantrums into mastering the Rasengan.

'_A breeze on my face, ignore it. My own sound of breathing, ignore it. Concentrate on the task at hand… rotate…_' his heart sped up as the chakra began spinning faster and faster. '_Compress it…_' Pulling forth all his strength, he worked to make the chakra compressed. '_Tighter, tighter, tighter still._'

Jiraiya watched as the chakra in Naruto's hand began spinning at high speed and was taking a shape similar to a ball. '_Impressive…_' he thought. '_He may master it in a world record, cause I've never seen anyone master an A-Rank jutsu in less than 24 hours._'

Naruto grit his teeth. '_Come ON! Compress, dammit!_' Concentrating on the single task in front of him, slowly and steadily, a ball of chakra formed, swirling at high speed. The sound of clapping reached Naruto's ears and he opened his eyes to see Jiraiya smiling widely at Naruto.

"Congratulations! You've mastered the jutsu. The thing is, you'll have to keep practicing the Rasengan until you can form one in a few seconds."

Naruto stared. "How long has it been?" he asked.

"It's been…" Jiraiya checked a pocket watch. "Three hours…"

"WHAT?" Naruto yelled. "I swear that it's only been like ten minutes!"

Jiraiya shook his head. "You were so busy concentrating you didn't notice the time fly. Try forming Rasengan one more time."

Naruto looked at his hand, and began the same process he did before. Gathering chakra, he spun it and compressed it. This time, it took ten minutes to make a Rasengan, and Naruto noticed this. "Huh, once you know how to create it, it gets easier…" he commented.

"Yeah. For the next several days, your task is to practice the Rasengan until it takes a few seconds. _Then_ I'll teach you the next jutsu."

Naruto scowled. "What a rip-off!"

Jiraiya grunted. "Ok, here's my excuse. I don't really know the jutsu all that well and I need to go look it up."

"What is this jutsu that you speak of?" Naruto asked, cocking his head questioningly.

"The **Hiraishin no Jutsu**, trademark of your father, the Yellow Flash. He was the only one who could use it. Seeing as how you're his kid though, I have reason to believe that you are able to perform it, and I'll go look up the details on how to learn it."

Gasping, Naruto began bouncing in happiness. "Woo! Hiraishin!" he yelled.

Waving his hands around, Jiraiya calmed Naruto down. "Whoa there, boy. I still have to research the jutsu and find out how to properly train you to use it." Sighing, Jiraiya began walking away. "After you speed up your Rasengan, summon a frog and send a message to me."

Grimacing, Naruto began practicing Rasengan forming while walking back to the Akatsuki base. '_This is going to be one hell of a nightmare…_' he thought as he once again forced all concentration into forming the sphere of chakra.

In no time at all, he had reached the Akatsuki base. '_Huh… it was supposed to be a 30 minute walk… I only made four Rasengan too…_' Walking up to the barrier, he fired through seals and released the genjutsu. Walking inside and through the dim hallways, he could make out voices, though not what they were saying.

"**Kage Sanpo no Jutsu**" Naruto muttered. Melding into the darkness, he inched to the meeting room as he heard several Akatsuki members arguing with each other. Peering around the door, he saw what the commotion was about.

"We should have wiped Konoha out!" Kakuzu raged.

"And then what? Have Orochimaru attack us? We successfully cut down his standing army, which is beneficial to us." Sasori spoke quietly.

Zetsu grumbled under his breath. "We didn't have to go so far as to defend Konoha."

"It was in our best interests. With our last act, Konoha is in our debt. We can utilize their service when the time comes." Itachi countered.

Yoshi held up a hand to silence further outbursts. "What's done is done. Indeed, we have weakened Orochimaru AND gained the trust of Konoha. As long as the Sandaime lives, they will not turn against us."

The other members had to agree, while Yoshi pressed on. "Furthermore, we were able to get the Ichibi jinchuuriki, making our bijuu count five."

Deidara raised an eyebrow. "Since when did we have five, yeah?"

"Itachi, Kisame, and I went out and captured the Hachibi." Yoshi declared. "Who will it be sealed in?"

Zetsu shook his head. "A dragon is not made for a being such as me."

"I'd rather have the Sanbi…" Kisame grumbled.

"Would not the Rokubi be better for either Masaki or you, leader?" Itachi asked curiously.

Yoshi nodded. "Unfortunately, we know not where the Rokubi lies. Should not the next generation get the bijuu, so that our purpose may live on?"

"You mean to seal the Hachibi in Masaki?" Kakuzu said in disbelief.

"If we are to die, there is still the next generation to live on. Wouldn't it make more sense to seal it in Masaki or Itachi, than ourselves?" Yoshi asked them.

Sasori smiled softly. "A sound plan, Yoshi-san. Let us do it."

Kakuzu frowned. "Whatever. What's with the new trainee anyway?"

"You mean Gaara?" Sasori asked.

Zetsu shook his head. "No… that strange one. The one that seemingly cannot die."

"Oh, you mean Hidan? Yes, that is quite strange." Yoshi admitted. "His strange ability would be beneficial to Akatsuki, however."

"Back to our agenda, when will we seal the Hachibi into Masaki?" spoke Kisame.

"Monday." Kakuzu said abruptly.

Yoshi frowned. "That's my favorite day of the week."

"That's exactly the point. On your favorite day, one of your favorite demons will be sealed into your precious daughter." Kakuzu explained.

"Whatever." Yoshi mumbled. "Monday it is."

Kakuzu stared at the Akatsuki members. '_These guys… they don't care about money, but I do… Each of their heads are worth LOTS of money, but let's not think about that now…_'

Coughing, Itachi stood up. "I will dismiss myself now." Walking past the door, he purposely stepped on Naruto's foot, HARD, causing the blonde to bite his lip, lest he whimper in pain and reveal his presence.

"_Damn you nii-san!_" Naruto cursed mentally.

Itachi smirked as he walked down the hall. "_It's what you get for eavesdropping, Naruto._"

Naruto, still cursing silently, limped down a different hall to his bedroom. '_Dammit…_' Naruto thought as he looked at the bruise on his foot. '_I'm probably handicapped for an entire day!_' In the midst of rage, the sound of his door opening made him freeze.

"Ne, Naruto. How was your training?" The feminine voice of Masaki drifted to his ears.

He turned and smiled widely. "Heh, I mastered Rasengan. Old pervert says I should practice it until I can pull one out in a few seconds."

Masaki walked next to him. "What? He didn't teach you that third jutsu?" she asked.

Naruto shook his head. "No, he says he needs some time to research the jutsu, since only my dad's ever been able to use it."

Eyes widening, Masaki whispered, "You mean the **Hiraishin no Jutsu**?"

"Yeah, that's the one. He's going to find out how best to teach it to me, while I perfect the Rasengan making."

"Can I see the Rasengan?" Masaki pleaded.

Naruto sighed. "Alright, here goes nothing." Focusing, a Rasengan appeared over his palm in five minutes. "I'm still working on making it appear faster."

"Cool!" Masaki cried, with starry eyes to boot. "Is it destructive?"

'_Crazy girl…_' Naruto thought. "Yeah. It's a tear and grind jutsu, A-Rank."

Deidara suddenly appeared outside the room. "Yo, scouts report a large movement of stone nins around our base, yeah. Best to prepare for the worst, yeah."

"Thanks, Deidara-san." Naruto said. Turning to Masaki, he gave her a short nod before heading off to the armory.

Once there, Naruto began sifting through equipment and stuffed as many as he could into his pouches. '_Best be prepared, even if it's a false alarm…_' he thought. Strapping on his still unused zanbatou, he frowned. '_It's a waste if I never use this piece of art. I'll make sure to use it in my next mission._'

"_Oi, Masaki. What did Yoshi-san say?_"

"_Otousan said it was a false alarm. They were practicing their formations and strategies._"

Sighing, Naruto began walking back to his room. "_Or they could've been looking for us. I've heard that there have been rumors about us flying around lately._"

"_Fat chance. No one could find our base without a member. We've moved since Orochimaru's defection, so he doesn't know where we are either._"

"_Oh yeah, by the way… You're getting the Hachibi sealed in you in two days._"

"_WHAT? Why didn't anyone tell me?_" she yelled mentally.

"_I just eavesdropped it just twenty minutes ago, geez. Keep your head on straight Masaki._"

"_Sorry._"

"_Now, what say you to some ramen?_"

"_Again? I know Deidara likes the stuff, but he doesn't eat it all the time you know._"

Scowling, Naruto waved the statement away. "_Che, I've been eating ramen all my life, and I'm stronger than you. What does that make ramen?_"

"_A food that keeps you the size of a midget._" Masaki smirked.

Raising his arms in the form of an X, Naruto shook his head. "_H-Hey! You know I'm sensitive about that._"

"_Then you're going to stop eating ramen, so it no longer becomes sensitive. Alright?_"

"_Yes ma'am…_" Naruto grumbled.

* * *

Two days later… 

"It is done…" Yoshi mumbled. He and the other members were exhausted. "Sealing a bijuu is no easy process," he grumbled.

Walking over to where the unconscious Masaki lay, he picked her up. "Sleep well, my daughter, for new trials await you." Dropping her off in her room, he left to arrange another meeting.

Moving quickly to the speaker, he muttered the announcement in a low voice and patiently waited for the others.

One by one, every member except Masaki entered, as she was still resting from the ordeal.

"First thing's first. Where to now? We have no other locations of any other bijuu." Yoshi spoke loudly.

As the members began muttering amongst themselves, a scout stumbled into the room. "Stone shinobi… closing in… massive numbers…" he choked out.

Immediately, the remaining eight members of Akatsuki stood from their seats and ran to the entrance. When they arrived, they saw that the Stone shinobi had already gotten inside.

"How did they get in?" Yoshi hissed.

"Easy. We told them how."

Yoshi whirled around to see that some members were no longer there. Turning back to the intruders, he spotted Zetsu and Kakuzu, along with Hidan the trainee in the group.

Kakuzu sneered. "I'm being paid handsomely for this, and I will become the richest shinobi on earth after I cash in your _heads_!"

"Not if I have any say in it, traitor!" Kisame growled. Yoshi quickly glanced at Deidara. "Deidara, take any others loyal to us and flee. There are too many for us to win," he whispered fiercely. "We'll do our best to hold them off."

"Roger that, yeah." Running off, Deidara quickly met up with Tobi the trainee and sprinted to Masaki's room.

Back at the entrance, the remaining Akatsuki members faced off against the horde of Stone shinobi.

In one wordless command, Yoshi, Itachi, Kisame, Sasori, and Naruto rushed into the army and began their slaughter.

---Naruto---

Jumping high into the air, he unsheathed his zanbatou and came down hard, slicing an enemy in half. Growling, he pressed a small switch on the hilt, causing a piece of the zanbatou to disconnect. Grabbing the second, smaller blade, he imbued both with chakra. The larger blade became considerably lighter, while the smaller blade burst forth in chakra.

Swinging, he sliced a kunai neatly in half with the smaller blade. Surprised, the Stone shinobi could only widen his eyes before he was decapitated. '_Sweet, it cuts through kunai like nothing._' Naruto thought.

Whirling in a tornado-like motion, he plunged into another group of shinobi, chopping off arms, legs, heads, whatever he came into contact with. Throwing his swords into the air, he fired through hand seals. "**Katon: Karyuu Endan!**" The flame dragon cut down five shinobi before stopping its rampage.

After loosing the dragon, Naruto jumped while grabbing both his swords, and dropped down onto another group of enemies. '_Shit, there are so many! At this rate, I'll be tired out!_'

Lashing out again, he cut through another shinobi's stomach, while his other blade chopped off an arm. '_When I kill one, two more take his place. Dammit!_' Naruto charged his blades with lightning chakra and slammed them to the ground, paralyzing the shinobi that were in range. Pulling out kunai, he hit them in the heart, and panted.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**"

Eight Naruto clones appeared around him. "Let's go!" he yelled. He and his clones rushed into battle. Each one battled valiantly until they were destroyed. Naruto repeated this process, but it soon reflected on him, as he was left on one knee, gasping for breath. '_Damn chakra exhaustion!_' he cursed.

"Naruto!" Yoshi called out. "Follow Deidara and get the hell out of here!" he roared.

Naruto stared in disbelief, but the look in Yoshi's eyes told him that he would die unless he didn't leave immediately. "Roger that, leader…" With that, Naruto went off in search of Deidara and the others.

---Kisame---

"Bring it on, you weaklings!" Kisame yelled. Swinging his massive Samehada, he cut through five enemies. The remaining shinobi backed up, not wanting to stay in range of the chakra-eating sword.

One foolish man decided that he could beat Kisame, and rushed in, fists blazing. Kisame sneered. "You IDIOT!" he shouted, before impaling the shinobi. Provoked, the rest rushed in at one time, forcing Kisame back. "Damn you PESTS!" he screamed as he swung wildly, killing several more.

More shinobi crowded around him, giving him no room. '_Damn, they're like bugs. They don't stop coming._' Roaring, Kisame jumped into the air. "**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!**" The large torrent of water slammed down onto the nin under him, killing a dozen or so of them.

Once again backing up, the shinobi looked at him fearfully.

"Go. I'll take care of him." Kakuzu said as he landed in front of them. Nodding, they head off to another opponent.

"Che, I'll lop your head off, traitor!" Kisame snarled as he hefted his blade.

Kakuzu grinned. "We have the advantage in numbers Kisame. You have already lost."

Kisame scoffed. "We've known that since the start. The least I can do before losing is to _kill _you."

"You cannot kill me in your current, weakened condition, Kisame." Kakuzu sneered.

We'll see about that! **Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!**" Once again converting his chakra into water, he sent a devastating dragon of water at Kakuzu.

Sidestepping, Kakuzu rushed in, kunais drawn. Jumping over a swing, he dropped down next to Kisame, who merely grinned. Instead of stopping his first swing, he kept on swinging, bearing down once again on Kakuzu. Surprised, he managed to bring up his kunai in time to block the attack, but was driven back several feet.

"**Suiton: Teppodama!**" Water splashing on Kakuzu's face, Kisame quickly sprinted in range and swung down, cutting off an arm. '_Che, making chakra into water and performing a jutsu without hand seals is very tiring._' Kisame frowned as Kakuzu dropped to the floor. Bringing up his Samehada, he swung down, but Kakuzu quickly rolled. Jumping up, he rushed at a new opponent, whose back was turned.

"LEADER!" Kisame roared, as he sprinted after Kakuzu.

---Yoshi---

'_Damn bastards betrayed us!_' Yoshi thought furiously as he cleaved a shinobi in two with a katana. Parrying a kunai slash, he thrust a lightning-charged hand into the offender's chest, killing him. '_Dammit, I hope the others get out safely._'

"Yo, let's have some wondrous _pain_ together." A voice mumbled behind him.

"Hidan, I'm disappointed in you." Yoshi said darkly.

Hidan merely smiled. "Hey, I do what I want to do. No one commands me."

Yoshi flickered next to Hidan, stabbing him, causing him to frown. "Che, I wasn't even ready yet, you bastard." Yoshi ducked under Hidan's swing, and kicked him in the jaw, sending him skyward.

Flipping in midair, Hidan lashed out with his tri-spiked blade. Sidestepping, Yoshi pulled several shuriken out of his pouch and threw them. "You're going to have to do better than that to beat me, Hidan." Yoshi taunted.

"Che." Hidan muttered. Twisting his body, he dodged the shuriken and landed on the ground. "Come!" he yelled, as his skin changed color and an image of a skeleton appeared on him. Darting within range, Yoshi swung his katana at Hidan's neck, only to be stopped short from decapitating it. "You really thought that was going to work?" Hidan asked, before thrusting his blade.

Clipped, Yoshi flipped backwards, landing several meters away. "I was _hoping_ it would." He growled. '_Even with that slow weapon of his, if I can't kill him he'll win the war of attrition._'

Yelling out a battle cry Yoshi rushed forward to meet Hidan head on. Blades clashing, Yoshi pulled out another katana, and thrust at Hidan's heart. Tilting slightly so that it hit his chest, he jumped back and grinned at Yoshi. "Oho! That was a close call. Too bad, I'll never let you hit me there."

---Normal POV---

"LEADER!" Kisame's voice rang out. Before Yoshi could react, an injured Kakuzu stabbed him in the back. Pain shot through his body, and he cursed. '_Damn bastard, attacking me from behind…_' he thought as he fell on his knees. Hidan's blade shot out, cleaving into Kisame's chest. Grunting in pain, Kisame swung Samehada down, killing Kakuzu. "Bastard!" he spat out.

Hidan walked slowly to Yoshi. "Well leader, look who's on the winning side now," he said cockily. Smirking, Yoshi used the last of his strength to suddenly flicker in front of Hidan, smacking Hidan several times near the heart with lightning-charged fists. Before Hidan could get his bearings, Yoshi went through several seals.

"**Chidori!**" he choked out before ramming his hand through Hidan's heart. "No matter how strong your skin, you cannot block against high rank jutsu like this one, Hidan. You lose." With that, Yoshi collapsed onto the floor and breathed his last.

"Leader…" Kisame muttered. Wincing in pain, he glanced over to Itachi, who had easily disposed of Zetsu. '_Figures, the spy guy had barely any offensive or defensive moves._'

Turning his head to another direction, he saw the sheer amount of shinobi had overwhelmed Sasori. '_Damn them to hell!_' Kisame cursed. "Itachi-san! We have to retreat!" Kisame yelled.

Itachi landed next to Kisame. "Let me give them a going away present first, Kisame." Smirking, he turned to the enemy shinobi.

"**Mangekyou Sharingan!**"

* * *

Kaoru was humming to herself quietly when Deidara barged in with Masaki over his shoulder. 

"Hey! What's with the invasion of privacy?" Kaoru demanded. Deidara took a deep breath. "We're under attack and we need to evacuate. Come with me quickly!"

Kaoru stared, but followed his instruction nevertheless. "What happened? This base is supposed to be _hidden_!"

"Traitors… Zetsu, Hidan, and Kakuzu were traitors…" Deidara rasped. "Everyone else is fighting."

"Deidara-san! I've retrieved Gaara-kun like you asked." Tobi said as he ran over to Deidara.

As Tobi, Kaoru, and Gaara followed Deidara, they suddenly heard a series of loud explosions.

"GOD DAMMIT!" roared a familiar voice. Turning the corner, they saw Naruto scuffling with ten enemy ANBU. "Die you bastards!" he yelled, as he spun around and kicked one of the ANBU in the gut, then decapitating him. Quickly pulling out several explosive kunai, he threw them down the hall, causing the hall to be blocked off by rubble.

"Naruto!" Kaoru yelled. Naruto turned around, while one of the ANBU took the chance to rush in and swing down on Naruto's arm. "Guh!" Naruto choked out. Grabbing onto the blade, he let one of his chakra fangs slide from his sleeve. The ANBU, struggling to pull the sword from Naruto's shoulder, suddenly saw a glint of red before being stabbed through the heart.

Shoving him off, Naruto quickly looked around to see that the other enemies had been demolished. Turning around, he saw a smirking Gaara and a worried Deidara.

"Naruto! What happened, why aren't you with leader?" Deidara asked.

"Leader told me to get you guys and run." Naruto explained. "I don't know what happened.

"Naruto!" Itachi yelled as he ran down another hall.

"Itachi nii-san! What happened?

"Leader and Sasori are dead." Itachi said as he stopped next to Naruto. Standing next to him was a bleeding Kisame. "You have to go on ahead while we hold them back."

"What?" Naruto and Deidara shouted. "I won't leave you behind, Itachi nii-san!" Naruto growled.

Kisame grinned, but winced again. "We'll take care of the shinobi, brat. Just follow Deidara into the secret passage. Only Itachi-san, Deidara, and Yoshi-san ever knew of it."

The sound of a door slamming open greeted their ears as another large group of shinobi entered the hallway. "Quickly, GO!" Kisame roared, pushing Naruto away while grabbing his trusty sword. Turning to Itachi, he smiled sadly. "If we're to go down, let's go down in style, shall we Itachi-san?"

Itachi smirked. "Yes, let's." The two Akatsuki members charged in fearlessly into the group of shinobi, cutting them down left and right. '_I only hope Naruto will get out in time._' Itachi thought.

* * *

"Quickly." Deidara urged them. Leading them to a large room, Deidara pressed walked across the room and pressed a part of the wall. Activating the switch, a loud rumble was heard and the entire wall in front of them disappeared in front of their very eyes. 

Throwing one of his clay birds onto the center of the room, where it grew in size to that of a wagon, he turned to the others. "Let's get on the bird and get the hell out of here, yeah."

Before Naruto jumped onto the bird, he looked sadly behind him. Taking one final look, he nodded to Deidara and jumped on.

"Let's go, yeah!" Deidara shouted. The large bird took off, and soon they were several hundred feet into the air. "They look like ants down there don't they?" Naruto commented.

"Yeah…" Suddenly Deidara's eyes bugged out. "Holy shit, trebuchets!" Turning hard, a large stone flew past their previous position. Under them, they could see dozens of trebuchets lined up to fire at them. "Kami-sama help us!" Kaoru pleaded. As if to mock them, all the enemy trebuchets opened fire on them. "Hold on!" Deidara yelled as he began evading the huge pieces of stone, often veering left and right at hard angles. When Deidara had dodged the seemingly last rock, another rock suddenly appeared from nowhere and slammed into the bird. "Oh shit, there was one right behind the one we dodged!" Deidara yelled.

"We're losing altitude! I'll try to land us as far away as possible!"

With years of piloting experience under his belt, Deidara dropped the bird down safely at the border between the Leaf and the Waterfall. "I guess this is the end of Akatsuki." Deidara muttered.

"We should split up." Naruto said suddenly. A groan was heard, and everyone turned their heads to see Masaki gaining consciousness. "What happened? Why are we in a forest?"

Deidara looked downcast. "We were attacked, and we barely escaped. I don't know what happened to Itachi-san or Kisame-san. Sasori-san and Yoshi-san were killed."

Masaki gasped. "N-No! That can't be!" she whispered.

Naruto continued where he left off. "As I was saying, we need to split up. We'll be harder to track that way."

Tobi nodded. "We should head off in pairs though. There are six of us so…"

"No." Naruto interrupted. "I need to do something on my own."

"I-I'll be with Kaoru." Masaki mumbled, still shocked from the news of her father's death. "I'll train her to the best of my ability."

"I'll be with Gaara and Tobi then." Deidara said. "If you ever need something, give me a call, yeah?"

Naruto nodded slowly. "This is goodbye… for now. I hope we will meet again in the near future." Naruto bowed, and disappeared in a pillar of flames. The others stared sadly at the spot where Naruto had been. '_This is goodbye…_'

"Come." Deidara motioned to Tobi and Gaara. "Where to?" Gaara asked emotionlessly. "Mist Country. We'll raise some money first, and think of what to do later, yeah." Deidara answered. He turned to Kaoru and Masaki. "Take care of yourselves, yeah."

"We will, don't worry Deidara-san." Masaki said. "Come with me, Kaoru. We're heading for the Wave. It'll be isolated enough for training."

With that, the remaining members of Akatsuki split off to head to an uncertain future.

* * *

Naruto walked into a clearing, located in a lush forested land in between Fire and Lightning Country. 

"_Akira, there's been implications. I'm heading to your position._"

"_Understood, Naruto-san._"

Walking to a certain tree, Naruto went through a few hand seals and released the genjutsu. Climbing down the now revealed ladder, he sprinted down the tunnel. '_It should take a day to reach my destination…_' he calculated. '_It'll take less time if I sprint using the fox's chakra._'

'**I have a name you know.**'

'_Shut your trap, fox. I'm not really in the mood._'

'**Well _I_ am, brat.**'

'_You can talk to me all you want when I get to my destination. Right now, I have to focus on getting there._'

'**Whatever.**'

Now in silence, Naruto scowled and sped up. '_Should take a few hours at this speed._' Naruto thought, as he raced through the tunnel. '_Damn traitors should die. I wonder if they're already dead…_'

Soon losing himself in his thoughts, he didn't notice his surroundings fly past until he suddenly slammed into a ladder. '_Dammit, I wasn't paying attention!_' Cursing loudly, he began climbing up the ladder. Popping his head out of the hole, Naruto jumped out and took out a map.

"Let's see… two miles north-west…" After gathering his bearings, Naruto continued on to his destination, this time jumping across tall trees. It didn't take nearly as long on this part of the journey, as it was only two miles. Landing in a clearing, he looked around for several minutes until he found a rune carved onto one of the trees.

'_Here we go!_' Going through several hand seals, he released the trigger, and turned around to see large walls. '_Heheh, after all those years, my dream has come to fruition._'

Walking over to the gate, he was instantly greeted by two guards. Recognizing him from photos, they did not hesitate to let him through, with a quick salute and a "Welcome, Naruto-san."

Naruto smiled as he walked through the barren streets. '_It might not have that many people yet… but that's alright._'

Walking to the tower at the center, he grinned and began climbing the tower. '_Here I am, in the newly established Light Country. I wonder what this village should be named…_' he thought optimistically, finally reaching the top. Entering the room, he was immediately greeted with several salutes and greetings.

A pale man with short, spiky black hair, and wearing a dark t-shirt and blue jeans, walked up to him. "Naruto-san? What brings you here so early?"

"Akatsuki was attacked, Akira. We have confirmed six survivors. Three members and three trainees."

A chorus of gasps was heard around the room. "Naruto-san, how did you get attacked?"

Naruto glared out the window. "There were traitors. They came with hundreds of Stone shinobi and into the base."

Akira hesitated, but spoke up. "Since you are here, Naruto-san, are you going to take the command now?"

Grinning, Naruto nodded. "This is all that I have left now." Turning to the men and women assembled in the room, he roared, "I AM UZUMAKI NARUTO, THE NEW HIKAGE!"

* * *

Heheh, I twisted the plot so horribly. Sorry for the short chapter, but I felt like I should cliffie at that spot Mwahaha! Now you know what Naruto was actually talking about a few chapters back. I had this planned out for a while, and I tried to make it as discreet as possible. In the next few chapters, I'll be introducing the third female OC into the mix, and until then, I would like to hear your opinions on who should be paired with whom. 

**Reviews**

Thank you **armanstay** for your review, and faithfulness. I hope to update more often, as I am now a fountain of inspiration.

Thank you **sasuke1342 **for your review. Yes, I hate mistakes. I recently went through all my chapters again and fixed several things. I'm kind of partial to Naru/Hina (her stuttering pisses me off), but yours is a good fic nonetheless.

Thank you **Genesis D. Rose** for your review. We may NEVER know –legasp- since they're dead. –cackles-

Thank you **RouxNakie** for your review. After I fully introduce the third OC, I'll have you guys vote!

Thank you **BooTheGhost** for your review. Yeah, it makes more sense because, seriously, how does anyone put up with that crap for 13 YEARS? It would make more sense that he finally breaks and leaves the village.

Thank you **LbcLostKid** for your review. They are allies in some form. One way or another, Konoha is in Akatsuki's debt. On another note, I have NO idea how Deidara was funny in that chapter o.O. Kabuto is as loyal to Orochimaru as he is in the manga, I'll have you know. Just like in the manga, Orochimaru released Kabuto from the mind control.

Thank you **BloodRenevant** for your review. Writing and reading fanfics also help me take my mind off the stresses of school.

I thank everyone else who reviewed. I did not include your names, because of the simple comments you left me, but know that I thank you.

**Vocabulary**

Hachibi – Eight Tails

Hikage – Light Shadow - Light Country

**Jutsu List**

**Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) S-Rank – Ninjutsu employed by the Yondaime Hokage, or the Yellow Flash, the user performs a something similar to the Kuchiyose, summoning himself to another position. Used with the special summoning seals on the Yondaime's special kunai. Hiraishin can also be accomplished by marking a spot with a chakra line, but this takes a considerable amount of chakra. To the naked eye, the enemy only sees the user as a flash of light, before they are cut down.**

**Kage Sanpo no Jutsu (Shadow Walk Technique) B-Rank – The user walks in the shadows and disappears to the naked eye, but Bloodline limits such as the Byakugan and the Sharingan can see through this. This jutsus primary purpose is to infiltrate enemy strongholds without being heard or seen.**

**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Element: Water Dragon Blast Technique) A-Rank – An attack that creates a huge current water in the shape of a dragon. A devastating single attack, the user does not need to be in or on water to perform the jutsu.**

**Suiton: Teppodama (Water Element: Gunshot) B-Rank – The user converts chakra to water, and spits out high velocity and high-density balls of water at the enemy. If strong enough, these balls of water can break bones and crush enemies with large enough density.**

**Author's Note:**

Well, this is Chapter 6: Betrayal and the Light. Next chapter is Chapter 7: Down to Business. I hope you enjoyed this update.

Please Read this, and Review anything for me. I do not dislike constructive criticism, so please, tell me if there is anything you dislike or if there is anything wrong with my writing. I will not hesitate to change.

I'll see you next time, Ja ne! -Benney


	8. It's Just Business

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 7: Down to Business

----

**Words: **43,927 **Hits: **20,968 **Reviews:** 89 **Favs: **93 **Alerts: **140

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

"**Half Demon**"

"Summon"

* * *

The very next day… 

Naruto growled in frustration. Paperwork never did suit him… Groaning, Naruto returned to reading and signing the papers.

'_I suppose it can't be helped, as we're a new ninja nation… Daimyos want to know how reliable we are, and other nations seek alliances._'

Looking at another piece of paper, he sighed. '_Daimyo wants us to support his military if the need arises? Doesn't EVERY ninja nation do that? Do they even NEED to ask this?_' Signing it, he turned to another paper. '_Konoha requests a meeting with the Hikage… discussing alliance and other political matters…_' Naruto began chewing his lip. '_If I heard right a few days ago, Konoha is in our debt. I could use this to our advantage…_ _Alright._' Taking out a different sheet of paper, he quickly wrote a reply and sent it using his fastest carrier bird.

"_Alright, you guys. I'm going on a short trip to Konoha to discuss alliances and the such._"

"_Take care, Naruto-san._"

"_I will, Akira. In the meantime, you'll be the temporary Kage._"

"_Hai._"

Naruto strolled from the tower and was almost at the gate when two shinobi landed next to him. "Hikage-sama, you must not go alone." Naruto turned to the speaker. '_Hmm… he has raven hair, blue eyes, a look on his face that says 'Mess with me and die', a well toned body… and look, he has a katana. Hmm, it's a mere standard ANBU issued katana though… He looks around seventeen…_'

Looking thoroughly annoyed, Naruto frowned. "And why is it that I cannot go alone?"

"Trust us, Hikage-sama, we only seek to protect you from possible attack…" the other shinobi said. Naruto turned to face this one. '_Let's see… crimson red hair, and deep emerald eyes… just like Masaki's… She looks about my age too. Hmm… there are two kodachis hanging from either hip… probably a dual-wielder. Looks like she's also ANBU._'

"Well, if you're going to be my bodyguards, I should at least know your names, correct?"

The girl scowled. "You're our Kage, why don't you know our names?"

"I only became Kage yesterday, woman. I've been bogged down by paperwork and I haven't even had time to review your profiles, much less catch a glimpse of one." Naruto countered.

"I'm Kiwadoi Akane, age thirteen." She pointed to the other guy. He sighed. "I'm Tsuyoi Hikaru, age sixteen."

"We're both A-Class shinobi!" Akane declared proudly.

Naruto smiled. "Alright, I'm Uzumaki Naruto, new Hikage, age thirteen. I'm an S-Class shinobi."

Akane gawked. "WHAT? We're the same age!" she shouted.

Smiling smugly, Naruto began walking outside the village. "Come on, we should get going. I'm supposed to be in Konoha in three days." After stepping outside the gates, he immediately jumped forward and into the trees.

Clenching her fist in annoyance, she roared, "DAMN YOU WAIT UP!"

In a few minutes, his two bodyguards had caught up to him and were jumping through the treetops. "That was rude, just leaving us behind like that." Hikaru commented. Naruto shrugged it off. "We're going to meet with a caravan at the Light and Fire Country borders, and take it slow from there." The two shinobi next to him nodded. "Understood."

* * *

Sandaime stared out upon the crowds of Konoha, ready to make an announcement. "People of Konoha! I have received word that the Hikage of the newly established Light Country will be arriving in three days' time for diplomatic talks. You'd best be on your best behavior, to impress them! 

A series of murmurs broke out amongst the crowd. "A new Kage?"

"Diplomatic talks?"

"Impress?"

Sandaime cleared his throat. "We are hoping to gain an alliance with this new ninja village. Concerning our war with the Sound, we need as much assistance as we can get. Do not do _anything_ to provoke them, is that clear?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama!" the people chorused.

Satisfied, Sandaime Shunshin'd back to his office, and sat down tiredly. '_I hope that this negotiation goes well for us… We sure as hell need this. Even with Suna's alliance, they were weakened from the attack as well. Plus the fact that they currently don't have a Kazekage…_'

He looked up at the picture of the Yondaime Hokage. '_Arashi, what would you do in my position?_'

* * *

Akane shook Naruto. "Hikage-sama, we've arrived," she said softly. Grunting, he got up and put his Kage hat on. "Very well, let's go." Getting out of the wagon, Naruto and his two bodyguards walked the short distance to the Konoha gates. Waiting for them was the Hokage and his entourage of Jounin and ANBU. 

"Welcome to Konoha, Hikage-dono!" Sandaime greeted warmly. Naruto laughed lightly. "There is no need to be so formal, Sarutobi-san." The Hokage grinned. "Well, if you're going to call me by name, what's yours?" Naruto smirked and tilted his hat so it covered his face further. "I am merely Uzumaki." Sandaime suddenly got a serious look in his eyes. "I'd thought you died when I heard the Akatsuki base was raided."

"You heard of it?" Naruto asked. Sandaime nodded. "Yes, I did. We can talk in my office, where we can hold a more private conversation. Let's go." Naruto and the Hokage walked briskly to the tower and into the Hokage office. Kakashi and Maito Gai followed them inside, acting as the Hokage's bodyguards, while Akane and Hikaru went with Naruto.

Taking a seat, Sandaime motioned for Naruto to do the same. "Naruto… tell me what happened," he asked.

Naruto sighed. "Some of our… members… rebelled and led an army of Stone shinobi against us. A few of us escaped, and we split up soon after. This happened only four days ago, and I expect that you already knew that." Sandaime nodded, and Naruto continued. "There were six confirmed survivors… Three members and three trainees."

The Hokage cocked his head. "Trainees?" he asked, curious.

"Yes, trainees. They were shinobi that were being trained to join Akatsuki in the near future. Their names were Ryoku Kaoru, Amatsuyochi Masaki, and a strange man named Tobi, no surname."

"Ryoku Kaoru? Isn't she the one that disappeared during the second part of the Chuunin Exams?" Sandaime asked.

Naruto nodded. "We abducted her because she was a jinchuuriki. She is elsewhere now, training." He smirked slightly. "Back to the task on hand, I'd like to request an alliance with Konoha, as I know you'd ask us the same. BUT, I would like to keep the alliance a secret."

Sandaime nodded, and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "What of military and economic concerns?"

"Akatsukigakure no Sato will support Konoha in its times of need, and hopefully you will return the courtesy."

The Hokage smiled. "Akatsukigakure? Don't tell me you just made that up on the spot."

"Heheh… Actually, I did." Naruto laughed sheepishly. "I named it that in honor of our now deceased leader, Amatsuyochi Yoshiki. Also, it makes sense, as we're in the Country of Light."

Sandaime coughed. "As for economics, Konoha promises not to attack your caravans and merchants, but we also request that we be allowed to pass through your country unharmed, as well as initiating trade with the Light." With a neutral expression on his face, Naruto stood up and held out a hand. "I will extend that courtesy to you as long as we are given the same."

Nodding, Sandaime stood up and shook Naruto's hand. "Pleasure to work with you, Uzumaki…san. Heheh, it's so weird calling you that, Naruto." Anyway, for a week or so, we'll hammer out an alliance and regulations. Is that satisfactory?"

"Yes, it is." Naruto bowed and left the room, followed by his bodyguards. The three remaining shinobi stood in silence. "Where did Naruto learn politics?" Kakashi asked. Sandaime sighed. "I have no idea…"

* * *

Naruto was walking in the park, after ditching his guards and his Kage robes, until he heard a loud commotion nearby. Heading to the noise, he found himself staring at seven members of the Rookie 9. Everyone froze, and one could hear the leaves shifting from the wind. 

"Well, hello there. Where's Sasuke?" Naruto said out of the blue.

"Takai!" Ino yelled, causing Sakura to bop her on the head. "His name is Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto!"

"Reh?" The blonde shouted. "You mean _the_ dead-last of the academy over five years ago that suddenly disappeared one day?"

Sakura began waving her arms wildly. "Baka! That's no way to refer to an S-Class shinobi!"

"Is that true?" Shino asked quietly. Naruto nodded slowly, taking in his surroundings. "Where'd you disappear to after the exams?" asked Kiba.

"Ah…" Naruto began. "What have you been doing?" Chouji interrupted. Another voice entered the field. "It doesn't matter where he's been or what he's done. He is destined to be weak and unacknowledged." Neji said from his seat on a tree branch. Naruto scowled deeply. "I'd have thought that Masaki beat all that fate crap out of you when she kicked your ass, big time."

"This coming from the dead-last that didn't even make Chuunin!" Neji sneered. Suddenly, Akane and Hikaru burst into the clearing. "God dammit! Are you purposely trying to ditch us, you bastard?" Akane raged.

Naruto thought on it for a moment. "Um… yes." The blunt answer sent Akane into a murderous charge, which was barely held back by Hikaru. Turning to Naruto, he muttered, "Hikage-sama, it is unwise to 'ditch' your bodyguards."

There was a long silence which was broken by a…

"**WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?**"

Sakura gasped. "_You're_ the Hikage?"

"Amazing!" Ino yelled.

Chouji stared at Naruto. "No way…"

"So troublesome…" Shikamaru muttered.

Naruto glared at Neji. "Oh yes, what were you saying about me being a weak, unacknowledged dead-last, pretty-boy?"

Neji sneered. "Even if you're the Hikage, you're still weak. You're always so happy go lucky, you could never understand how it feels to have the people close to you killed, and having an irremovable seal placed on you! NEVER!"

In less than a second, Naruto was holding Neji up by the neck, eyes ablaze. His next words came out in a low, deadly tone. "Don't, EVER, judge me like that, you bastard. I have felt pain more horrible than you can even _imagine_. Being treated like scum… being attacked every year by mobs… being something inhuman in their eyes… All because of a seal put on me as a child… You will NEVER FEEL THAT!" he roared. "Even after that, I tried to set it all behind me, holding in my sadness and hate. Now, the only people that have actually seen me as a real human being were killed four days ago. WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TO JUDGE ME WHEN YOU'VE NEVER EVEN KNOWN ME?" Naruto screamed.

Neji was stunned by this sudden outburst. '_How is that possible? He was always acting so happy and carefree… as a child and even now… What he's telling me, no man should be able to take…_'

"Hikage-sama, calm down…" Akane muttered, as she put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "The past is exactly what it's called; the past. Leave it behind."

Naruto took a few deep breaths and sighed. "I know that, Akane…"

The other shinobi stood in silence, and shifted uneasily.

'_Is that really how he was treated?_' Ino thought. '_Horrible…_'

Sakura's small smile was sad. '_I thought I knew him… but not anymore._'

Shikamaru sighed. '_Damn, this is troublesome, but his words disturb me somewhat._'

'_To be able to endure all that and still put on a smile… his heart is strong._' Shino thought.

Naruto sighed again, and set Neji down. "You are a caged bird, Neji, as your seal suggests. Only when you realize that fate and destiny will lead you nowhere, and begin to follow your own path, will you be set free."

"Wow…" Ino breathed. "So philosophical and wise…"

Turning, Naruto smiled softly. "Come, Akane, Hikaru. Let's go to my apartment." The three shinobi disappeared in pillars of flames, leaving a perfectly silent clearing.

* * *

Opening the door to his apartment, Naruto apologized silently to his bodyguards. "I went wild… I couldn't control myself. Sorry about that." 

Akane waved it away. "No… you had every right to be angry. I'm surprised that it took you this long to vent all that pent up anger."

"You've had a very harsh childhood, Hikage-sama." Hikaru muttered. "I feel for you."

After closing the door behind them, Naruto spoke up again. "Here are the rules. During the night, each person will take turns taking watch, inside and outside the apartment. Once you're done, you go wake the next person up and sleep in their bed. That person will then do the same thing. Got it?"

Akane muttered something along the lines of 'stupid beds that boys have slept in' and plopped herself onto the couch.

Naruto smiled, as he and Hikaru sat down as well. "Well, now that we actually have some time together, why don't you tell me about yourselves?"

Hikaru turned away. "I'd rather not… discuss my past right now."

Nodding, Naruto turned to Akane. "How about you?"

"I have nothing to hide," she declared.

"Good!" he said brightly. "So tell me, how was your childhood? How did you grow up?"

"I'm from Kumo. I had an okay childhood…" Akane began. "My parents took care of me to the best of their ability. I entered the academy and graduated to become a shinobi at the age of five. I was considered a prodigy, and I became a chuunin by the age of eight. That's when the higher-ups decided I was too dangerous, after hearing of the Uchiha massacre in Konoha, where one single prodigy killed an entire clan. They set out to kill me, but I avoided death and ran home to find both my parents… dead. I left the country after that and have been training myself ever since."

Naruto nodded, understanding her pain somewhat. '_Which reminds me… I should ask Masaki and Kaoru about their lives too when I get the chance… Aw damn, but Masaki was but a child when she left, and Yoshi-san probably knew the entire story…_'

"So… how was _your_ childhood?" Akane asked him. "When I heard your words at the clearing, it didn't sound like a good one."

"Yeah… it's more appropriate to call the first eight years of my life… a nightmare." Naruto agreed. "I was an orphan, and the orphanage kicked me out when I was three. I lived alone since then in a single apartment, which mind you, was trashed every year. My birthday happened to be the same day of the Kyuubi's defeat, which the people heartily celebrated, by attempting to assassinate me. Over the course of my eight years in Konoha, I was the target of twenty-three total assassinations, some of them led by shinobi. If it weren't for the ANBU that Sarutobi-san sent to watch over me, I'd have died nearly every time."

"Horrible." Hikaru muttered.

"I was overpriced triple for everything, and I was often kicked out of most stores. Adults… they'd sneer at me. The children would follow their parents' examples. Some were hospitable, such as Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chouji. They frankly did not care of the opinions of the adults. To them, I was just another friend, and for that I'm thankful to them. Anyway, when I was at the age of six, I befriended Uchiha Itachi. He began teaching me the basics of the shinobi, just like the Academy teachers did, only he didn't drone for hours. When I was eight, he massacred the Uchiha and we left the village. When I was nine, I was at a high Chuunin level, and Itachi joined the criminal organization Akatsuki. There, I met my best friend Amatsuyochi Masaki, who I split up with just a few days ago. I was trained like hell, but I made a few friends amongst the members."

He teared up slightly as his memories came back to him. Blinking the small tears away, he continued.

"Over the course of four years, I went from the high Chuunin to the S-Class shinobi I am now. Just a few weeks ago, I returned to Konoha and joined a genin team with Masaki for the Chuunin Exams. Once there, we did a few abductions and foiled Orochimaru's planned assassination of Sandaime. We went back to our base after that, only to be betrayed. I have no idea who is left. I know that four of them died, and two others are still alive. The last two are unknown. I split up with the survivors and I came to the village I had slowly established over the years using my Akatsuki income, and here I am, the Hikage."

"Wow…" Akane mouthed. "You've gone through a lot. More than I have, I can say that for sure."

"You have a strong will, Hikage-sama. On another note, you need some new clothes. Your old ones are ripped to shreds." Hikaru mentioned.

Naruto laughed. "Oh yeah, I got that during the attack. Taking on several dozen Jounin and ANBU will do that to you, heheh. Anyway, I'll see what I can scrounge up tomorrow. In the meantime, who takes first watch?"

The room was silent as no one raised their hands. Sighing, Naruto grinned. "I guess this is the only way. ROCK PAPER SCISSORS!"

Hikaru deadpanned.

Naruto counted down. "One, two, three!"

"Scissor!" - Naruto

"Scissor!" - Hikaru

"Paper!" - Akane

"Oh my god!" Akane groaned. "First watch means I stay up even later!"

Naruto smirked. "I'll see you in _three_ hours, Akane." She nearly sobbed at this point.

The rest of the night went by uneventful. Naruto took second watch, and Hikaru took third. After that, it was sunrise, and Naruto bounded out of bed. "Time to go look for clothes while the sun is still young!" he declared. '_And while my guards are inattentive as well, heheh._'

Sneaking out through a window, he quickly moved towards the clothing district, where he browsed through rack after rack. '_There's no orange ANYWHERE!' _he thought.

"Is there anything specific you're looking for, dear?" A woman in her late forties asked.

"Ah… In fact, there is. I was looking for some orange clothes."

The woman blinked. "Orange? My, that's a rare color for shinobi nowadays… Either you like the color, you are very confident in your skills, or you're very dumb."

Naruto smiled widely. "Numbers one and two, lady. I love the color and not many can best me in battle."

"Alright, then. I have nothing in orange, but I can custom make you several sets if you'd like."

Stars appearing in his eyes, Naruto almost worshipped the woman on the spot. '_Custom made orange clothes!_' he thought excitedly. He stopped. "Ah… I have no fashion sense at all, so I don't know what I should get. He snapped his fingers. "Can you come up with something? I'd like anything orange and black, with the kanji for Black Lightning, and this..." He handed her a piece of paper. "…Seal on the back of whatever it is you make." He handed her another piece of paper. "I'd also like _this_ seal on a t-shirt, whatever color it is. I don't care what color or type my pants are, as long as the colors don't clash."

The woman smiled. "My, my, how specific. I'll be delighted to make you your clothes. Just come here for a second while I measure your clothing size."

Naruto smiled and complied, and in ten minutes time was strolling happily through the streets of Konoha. '_I wonder how my new outfit will look… several pairs as well._' His good mood was suddenly lowered when an annoyed Hikaru came into view. '_Oh man, he looks pissed. He's probably been looking everywhere for me…_' Immediately turning to run, he found Akane in front of him. '_Trapped!_' he thought, panicking. Before he could escape, Hikaru tackled him to the ground, and soon had him in a headlock.

"The next time you leave without telling us and I'll personally strangle you, Hikage or not!" he hissed. "Do you know how long we've been looking for you?"

Naruto smiled sheepishly. "Eh, sorry about that. I had to run some personal errands."

"Then leave a _note_ next time, baka!" Akane muttered.

"Eheh, sorry about that," he apologized.

Hikaru glared slightly at Naruto. "The Hokage wishes to speak with you about the… ah, alliance." Naruto got up and dusted himself off. "Alright then, off we go!" The three began jumping over rooftops to the general direction of the tower. "Why does he want us to come so early?" Naruto thought out loud.

"He most likely wants a draft complete before a full council meeting." Hikaru commented.

Naruto stared. "How would you know something like that?" he asked in disbelief.

Shrugging, Hikaru did not show any further emotion. "I was merely guessing."

"Let's go in through the window." Naruto suggested. "Good idea, it'll surprise the wits out of the geezer." Akane agreed. "Hn, as long as you don't try to run away anymore, I'm fine with whatever you do." Hikaru mumbled.

Jumping from window to window until they reached the top, Naruto thrust his head in with a loud "HELLO!" Sandaime fell off his chair in surprise and glared at Naruto. "I wish you'd use the door like a normal person, Naruto." Naruto merely clucked and wagged his finger. "Ah, but Sarutobi-san, I'm _definitely_ not a normal person, heheh."

Sandaime sighed. '_This'll be hell…_' "Anyway, let's begin the treaty writing, shall we?"

* * *

The sun was setting and Naruto was dragging himself home. '_Treaty writing really takes a toll on your mental stamina…_' he thought in gloom. 

After smacking into a wall twice, he managed to get to his apartment. By a stroke of luck, the key entered the keyhole the first time, but Naruto had trouble with opening the door.

"You turn it left to unlock it." Hikaru grumbled.

"Oh." Naruto said quietly.

Unlocking the door, they went inside. Naruto shuffled over to the couch and collapsed on it. "Dear Kami-sama, don't make me go through that process all over again tomorrow." Naruto pleaded to no one in particular.

"_Naruto-san, the Mizukage wishes an audience with you in six days._" Akira said suddenly.

"_WHAT? I just finished a treaty with Konoha and now the Mist?_"

"_I'm sorry Naruto-san, but we're a new nation after all… Konoha and Mist are on neutral terms, so we would be better off by securing alliances with both._"

Naruto mentally sighed. "_Alright, alright. I'll be there in six days. I can Shunshin directly to the wall anyway, since I know how it looks like._"

"_I will continue to work in your place, Naruto-san._"

Cutting the link, Naruto bawled himself to sleep that night…

* * *

It was the fourth day, and Naruto had finally received word that his clothes were finished. Leaving the apartment at the break of dawn, he entered the store, leaving his guards waiting outside. 

The woman bustled to the counter, a tired smile on her face. "Oh, you're quite early dear." The woman said kindly. Naruto smiled. "I haven't gotten new clothes in _forever_, so I'm excited."

"I understand." She said knowingly. Chuckling, the woman reached under the counter and brought out his new clothes. "Go try them on in the changing rooms, dear." Naruto took the clothes and did as she suggested. Looking in the mirror, his jaw dropped.

His new clothing consisted of a dark, orange t-shirt with an enlarged **Shiki Fuujin** and **Hakke no Fuuin Shiki** on the front. Over this, he had on a black hooded jacket with two, large orange stripes on either shoulder. On the back of the jacket was a containment seal for his zanbatou (Of course, she didn't know that) and the words 黒い over it and 電光 under it, all in orange. He had on a pair of dark blue cargo pants, with black combat boots and gloves (The type Kakashi wears). Naruto looked at himself in glee. '_I look so… so… BADASS!_' he thought happily.

Exiting the dressing room, he slapped down 17,550 Yen and made to leave, when the woman insisted that she could not take that much. "Dear, this is much too high!" Naruto smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, this is the finest clothing I've ever laid eyes on. Don't forget to make some new sets of clothes for me when you've got the time! Ja ne."

Naruto walked out to find Akane snoozing and Hikaru staring off to a distance, his eyes glazed over. '_That's how I look when I'm reminiscing or talking with Kyuubi…_' "Tch, how unreliable." Naruto muttered. He shook Hikaru out of his reverie and poked Akane repeatedly in the stomach until she woke up. Both of them, now aware of their surroundings, looked at Naruto.

Hikaru whistled. "Nice…"

"…" Akane could not criticize it in any way or form.

'_That outfit is awesome…_' the both of them thought.

"Omigod! Look at that _hunk_!" a voice cried out. The three of them whirled around to see a large mob of drooling girls with hearts in their eyes. '_Oh shit, this isn't good…_' Naruto thought. "There is only one course of action possible in a situation like this!" Naruto declared. Hikaru and Akane looked at him expectantly.

Taking a deep breath, he ran off down the street leaving a trail of dust in his wake while yelling, "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

* * *

It was two hours later that Naruto had stopped running to wait for his guards to catch up. Hikaru and Akane arrived five minutes later. "God dammit, you bastard! We almost got killed back there!" Akane screamed. 

"What, you couldn't handle some fan girls?" Naruto chortled. Looking around to make sure none of the crazy females had followed them, he nodded to Hikaru and Akane. "We're to go to the Mist in two days' time. I'll head there first with **Shunshin no Jutsu**, since I've been there before. It is up to you two to catch up to me. Understood?"

Without waiting for confirmation, Naruto disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. Hikaru stood staring at the spot silently. "Sometimes I really hate him," he muttered.

Still in bad moods, Hikaru and Akane sighed simultaneously and head off in the general direction of Kiri.

* * *

Naruto appeared at the same place he had come to just a few months prior, the sword smith of the Seven Swordsmen. Giving the place a gloomy look, he passed it by and headed to the gates of Kiri. '_I hope they aren't hostile…_' Walking out of the foliage, he hadn't walked more than two steps when he was surrounded by ANBU. "State your name and purpose!" a female voice barked out behind the group. Naruto peered around the shinobi in front of him to see who it was. 

'_Hmm… she looks around fourteen-ish… Wow, violet hair and blood red eyes. A slender figure, and two katanas strapped to her back. If her clothes were any given indication, I'd say she's a jounin, but her aura looks more of an ANBU…_'

"Well? Are you mute?" she demanded.

Naruto snapped out of his thoughts and laughed sheepishly. "I'm here to speak with the Mizukage."

She looked tiredly at him. "Then speak."

Naruto blinked once, twice, and chuckled. "So you're telling me… that _you're_ the Mizukage? You don't look that much older than me!"

Glaring, she growled. "Just because I'm young, doesn't mean I'm strong. My father was the previous Mizukage, but he's dead now. I'm his successor. Now, tell me what you want!" she said forcefully.

"I want to arrange a formal meeting, complete with your council." Naruto replied quickly.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What would this meeting be about? By any chance, would you tell me?"

"Nope."

"I'm _THE_ Mizukage, so tell me!"

Naruto chortled. "Yeah, and I'm an S-Class shinobi. Pshaw, I doubt you're the Mizukage."

"Bastard, next time you're not leaving us behind." A voice behind him growled. Naruto turned around to see his two bodyguards. Surprised, Naruto pointed at them. "You two, how'd you get here so fast? I was so sure I had two whole days to myself…"

"Hikaru here." She pointed at him. "Used to live in a village not far from here. We merely Shunshin'd and came here right after." She then noticed the ANBU and the violet-haired girl surrounding Naruto. "Oi, who are they?"

Naruto smiled cheerfully. "The welcoming party. The girl here says she's Mizukage, can you believe that?"

Hikaru stared emotionlessly. "Yes, yes I could."

"Are you saying that just because she's a girl?" Akane demanded.

Naruto held up his hands in defense. "No, it's not that. It's just… she's a bit young isn't she?"

Hikaru laughed. "And you aren't?" He turned to the unknown girl.

"_Tell her we're advance envoys._" Naruto sent.

"We're the advance envoys of the Hikage." Hikaru said as Naruto had directed.

The girl stared at him. "Hikage? The Hikage is actually coming?"

Naruto chuckled. "Uzumaki Naruto, envoy at your service, um…"

"Bakuhatsuteki Kasumi," she replied.

Naruto stared at her. "Explosive Mist?"

"Our surnames reflect on our hot tempers."

He laughed. "That explains why you're so temperamental." He looked around at the ANBU, measuring their strength. "So, is there any reason you requested for the Hikage to come to Kiri?"

Gathering her bearings, Kasumi gestured for them to follow her. "We are proposing an alliance with your village."

"Ah, here we are, signing _another_ alliance treaty." Kasumi froze. "You've signed a different treaty already?" she asked slowly.

"Yes…" he said offhandedly. "We're more than willing to ally with Kiri as well."

"Who's your other… ally?"

"Konoha. Why?"

She sighed in relief. "I was hoping it wasn't any country that we were hostile with. I suppose we could ally Konoha and create a sort of triangle alliance." Kasumi suggested.

Naruto hung his head. "More alliances…" Lifting up his head, he smiled optimistically. "We still have our treaty with Konoha. Maybe we could base this alliance off of theirs? Coming up with treaties are a pain in the ass. That'd be _hell_."

"That's the council's decision," she said shortly. "Do you have anywhere to stay?"

"No." Hikaru answered for him. "None of us have been in Kirigakure before."

"When will the Hikage be arriving?"

"What is this, twenty questions?" Naruto demanded. "He'll be here when you asked, in _two_ days!"

She whirled around and leaned dangerously close. "Envoy or not, piss me off and I _will _kill you!" she growled in a low voice. Huffing, she turned and began walking down the street again.

"_Damn, she's scary._" Naruto mumbled.

"_You got that right._" Akane agreed.

Hikaru mentally sighed. "_Let's keep going, or we're going to lose sight of her._"

Kasumi was waiting for them at the best hotel in Kiri. Naruto gawked.

"_Can we really afford to stay here?_" he said fiercely.

"_Considering that clients are slowly making a beeline towards us, yeah._"

"_Akatsukigakure is made up of A and S-Class shinobi. Clients know strength when they see it._" Hikaru muttered.

Sighing, Naruto went inside the hotel and made a reservation for three separate rooms. "_I swear, I never knew a Kage had to do so much paperwork and diplomatic crap._" Naruto grumbled.

"_That's why I never aimed to be the Raikage back when I lived in Kumo._" Akane said lightly.

"_Paperwork will be the end of me yet_." Naruto complained. "_Why no one elects one or two trusted officials to help with the paperwork, I don't know_."

Hikaru laughed. "_Because no one's ever thought of that_."

"_I have an idea of who to make those officials…_"

"… _If you say it's us, I'll kill you where you stand._" Akane threatened Naruto. "_Hikage or not, we are shinobi, not freaking clerks._"

Naruto frowned when he realized something. '_I haven't trained in DAYS!' _he wailed mentally, throwing himself onto the bed.

'**That's what you get for becoming Kage, brat.**'

Naruto groaned. '_Kyuubi, I need to train! I don't want to be like old man Sarutobi, where he has barely any fighting skills left in him!_'

'**I have the perfect solution for you, but there's a catch.**'

'_What is it?_'

'**Chishio Bunshins are the answer to all your problems.**'

'_Chishio Bunshins?_' Naruto asked in disbelief. '_No wait don't tell me. The catch is I have to pay in blood, right?_'

'**Every single time, brat.**'

'_How much?_'

'**Well, only enough to make the seal. The catch wasn't really the blood. The clone is sentient in its own right, and requires massive amounts of chakra for him to last.**'

'_What are the upsides to using this?_'

'**One, it gives you time to do other stuff, such as training. Two, when you dispel it, the information floods back like a Kage Bunshin. Three, it is, once again, sentient. It'll make decisions for itself based on your own ideology, morals, and logic.**'

'_It sounds awesome. How much chakra do I need to apply for it to last say, half a day?_'

'**Roughly a half of your current chakra.**'

'_Damn that's a lot…_'

Naruto stood quietly for a moment.

'_I'll take that risk and worry about the consequences when they come._'

'**All right, kiddo, to make a Chishio Bunshin, first make a Kage Bunshin.**'

Naruto did as instructed.

'**Now draw…**' Kyuubi showed Naruto an image and burned it into his brain. '**…This seal onto its forehead. This is where forehead protectors actually come in useful, because if the seal is damaged, the clone ceases to exist.**'

'_Maa, I feel like pissing off Kasumi. See you later, Kyuubi._'

'**Just don't let her get your hands on you, or you'll be mince meat, brat. Sayonara.**'

Ceasing his chat with Kyuubi, Naruto looked around to see that he was still in his room, sitting on his bed. '_Hmm… I think I should sneak off without telling my bodyguards…_' Opening the window, he jumped down the two stories to the ground and began slinking off to the Mizukage tower. "Excuse me, is Mizukage-san in?" Naruto asked one of the guards.

He shook his head. "No, she went home for the day." '_What? She went home? It's not even lunch yet, dammit!_' he moaned mentally. '_How lucky._'

Thanking the guard, he stalked off, wondering where the hell she could live. '_Well, Sarutobi-san did live in the Hokage mansion… that's it! She's probably in the Mizukage mansion. Now to find a mansion…_' After ten minutes of fruitless searching, he suddenly found himself in front of a huge mansion. '_Damn, how did that get there? I was so sure there weren't any mansions nearby…_'

Looking to the entrance, he could see two ANBU guards. '_I'll go in through the window… Nah. Ventilation! No one expects you to go through ventilation._'

Naruto hid behind a wall and whispered, "**Kage Sanpo no Jutsu.**" Now invisible to the naked eye, he took care to stay in the shadows and soon found himself at the back of the mansion. Looking up, he saw an air duct about fifteen feet into the air. '_Psh, I'll just walk up the walls._'

Quickly unscrewing the vent, he replaced it to make sure no one had his or her suspicions, and began walking through the ventilation. Yes, walking through it. '_Damn, their ventilation is huge… man-sized. I had trouble crawling through Konoha ventilation when I was a kid, but this is RIDICULOUS._'

Continuing his journey, he made sure to check every room he came across. '_How long will it take to get around the whole mansion I wonder?_' As he thought in silence, he heard a faint humming. '_Noise! From where?_' Using his sense of hearing, he followed the humming until he could hear it directly over one of the vents.

Peering down, his eyes quickly bugged out. '_Oh KAMI-SAMA! Kyuubi, prevent the nose bleed!_' Naruto pleaded. Indeed, Naruto would need that now, as he had just seen Kasumi taking a shower. '_Of all things for her to be doing when I spy on her..._'

'**Heh, you must be the king of luck… or bad luck in your case. I remember the last time you saw a girl like that, except she wasn't totally naked. You were tortured for four hours by Yoshi after.**'

'_Don't remind me._' Naruto thought grimly. '_He's dead, and I want to put that behind me._'

'**I'm going back to sleep kid. Call me if you need another nose bleed stopped.**'

Naruto made his way out of the ventilation as fast as silent walking could get him, and made a break for the hotel. '_I'll never be able to look at her the same, ever again._' Naruto thought, embarrassed.

Caught in his own thoughts, he did not notice a looming figure in front of him. Attention being elsewhere, he ran into the person. "Ow!" he cried as he landed on his behind. He looked up and his jaw dropped in horror. In front of him was a very, very, VERY pissed off Hikaru. Scrambling onto his feet, he was only able to get three feet before he was yanked back by his collar.

"Have mercy on me!" Naruto whimpered.

"What did we tell you about leaving _alone_?" Hikaru whispered in a deadly tone.

"Uh… don't do it?" Naruto squeaked.

"Yes…" Akane began cracking her knuckles. "This is the last warning. Do NOT ditch your bodyguards."

"Yes, ma'am…"

Naruto heard a faint noise, and immediately shoved both Hikaru and Akane to the ground, shielding them from the sudden bombardment of their position by explosive kunai.

"AMBUSH!"

* * *

Wah. I got a bit of writer's block, because I didn't have enough plot. –frown- As for this chapter, I introduced _TWO_ female OC's heheh. It took me three days to write this chapter, and frankly, I'm quite disappointed that I ran out of material to write. I hope the next few chapters will be better than this one. 

A/N: Vote for your favorite NarutoX?

NarutoxMasaki

NarutoxKaoru

NarutoxAkana

NarutoxKasumi

**Reviews**

Thank you **BooTheGhost** for your review. Yeah, it really did suck that Yoshi died, but it was all a part of my master plan. As for the twist, I twisted it so hard NO ONE knew it was coming, MWAHAHA!

Thank you **Genaric Name** for your review. As you see, I set up a poll. Over the next few chapters, I'll be focusing on character and setting building, as well as foreshadowing here and there. As for Itachi and Kisame… well, I know what happened to them… BUT I WON'T TELL YOU!

Thank you **hells-fox** for your review. I get that a lot too. I skip over a fanfiction because I don't think it's good enough. Later, I read it and I hit myself for my stupidity.

Thank you **Genesis D. Rose** for your review. I'm glad the twist was unexpected, yet enjoyable. Lol, Naruto is a thirteen-year-old Kage.

Thank you **sasuke1342** for your review. That actually was a close guess. He _was_ forming something, just not a rival organization.

Thank you **AzureAngelN** for your review. Akatsukigakure is made up of missing-nin wanting to start anew. Naruto created it with his Akatsuki income over the years, though I didn't really specify in the chapters.

Thank you **Serpent King **for your review. I'll be thinking about the change that Masaki goes through. There is plenty of time for me to think of something, as the pace is going to be a bit slow...

Thank you **Xsi** for your review. Yeah, they do have that history together as best friends, but that was what they were. Best friends. I have no doubt that when they get older, they'll see each other differently (If I choose to go NarutoxMasaki)

Thank you **Shadow Kitsune67** for your review. Towel… heheh, something quite similar to that happened this chapter you know, only multiplied two or threefold.

Thank you **Skillz2kill** for your review. Indeed, I cut off Tsuchigakure, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure of places to ally because he has his enemies in each one. One day in the future, Tsuchigakure WILL fall, I assure you that.

Thank you **Angelic.Dark** for your review. As for seeing Itachi and Kisame… how do you even know they're still alive?

I thank everyone else who reviewed. I did not find anything to answer in your questions, so I did not answer anything, but know that I thank you.

**Vocabulary** (On another note: I'll be using more Japanese words, as I'm more comfortable with them. Don't worry, I won't erect whole sentences.)

**Kiwadoi **_Akane_ – **Dangerous **_Brilliant Red_

**Tsuyoi **_Hikaru _– **Mighty **_Light_

Akatsukigakure no Sato – Hidden Village of the Dawn

Baka – Idiot

**黒い**_電光_ – **Black** _Lightning_

**Bakuhatsuteki **_Kasumi _– **Explosive** _Mist_

**Jutsu List**

**Shiki Fuujin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal) – S-Rank – The jutsu used by the Yondaime to seal the Kyuubi into Naruto, the technique brings forth the power of the Death God (Shinigami). Once the soul is taken, the Death God devours both the user and target's souls, causing them to be forever in battle with one another. **

**Hakke no Fuuin Shiki (Eight Trigrams Sealing Style) – None – Used along with the Shiki Fuujin, this seal allows Kyuubi's chakra to leak into Naruto's chakra, slowly strengthening him as the years go by.**

**Chishio Bunshin no Jutsu (Blood Clone Technique) – Jinchuuriki – The user makes a small blood seal on a Kage Bunshin or any other solid clone, giving it life for as long as the chakra sustains it, or if the seal itself is destroyed. It is sentient and can make its own decisions. The amount of chakra required to sustain the bunshin is high, but unlike Kage Bunshins, they can keep fighting until a deathblow is dealt. Users can also communicate telepathically among blood clones. **

Thank you for reading Chapter 7. Next chapter is Chapter 8: Kiri's Assault Part 1

Read the chapter and review your opinions. I do not mind constructive criticism. I will continue to work hard on chapters. Ja ne - Benney


	9. Retaliation

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 8: Kiri's Assault Part 1 - Retaliation

----

**Words: **50,579 **Hits: **28,356 **Reviews:** 146 **Favs: **125 **Alerts: **180

----

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

'**_Nibi_**'

"**Half Demon**"

"Summon"

----

Current Naruto pairing votes:

NarutoxMasaki: 23

NarutoxKasumi: 18

The other pairings were dropped due to minimal or no votes whatsoever. The voting will go on for about another one or two chapters, and a new round of voting starts… Now. People who have voted previously can vote again, one more time.

* * *

"_AMBUSH!" _

Naruto ducked under a flurry of kunai, and flipped forward into the air while his two teammates left quickly to another area, not wanting to get hit by the crossfire. Using his back to block their vision, he unsleeved his two chakra fangs. Falling down to earth face down, he set the fangs into an X position, and slashed downwards, decapitating two missing nin. Flying through one-handed seals, Naruto stabbed another missing nin in the heart before releasing his jutsu.

"**Chiton: Chiame no Jutsu.**"

Upon murmuring the name, the clouds opened up with rain. The missing nin around Naruto stopped suddenly and stared at the raindrops on their hands. "It's… IT'S BLOOD!" one man screamed. Another tried to locate Naruto, but the rain was too thick to see through. "I can't see the enemy!" he yelled out.

"**Chishio Bakuretsu!**" The deadly voice echoed throughout the battlefield.

Immediately, all the blood on the missing nin exploded, leaving no time for pain or screaming, and killed them all instantly.

Dispelling the rain, Naruto went through several more hand seals, and clapped his hands together and raised both of them into the air.

"**Raiton: Rairyuudan!**"

Twin lightning dragons flew up, and curved down and into two large groups of missing nin that were battling the Kiri shinobi, killing dozens of the missing nin.

"**Suiton: Suishouha!**" Naruto looked up to see Kasumi performing her own jutsu.

'_Shit, better get out of the way!_' Jumping into the air following the other Kiri shinobi, he watched as the confused missing nin was swallowed up by the tsunami.

He smirked. '_Seems she can handle herself well. I guess I underestimated her._'

Naruto viewed Kiri from his high perch. '_Just ten minutes ago, the place was so peaceful… Now the entire place is a battlefield._' He squinted his eyes and grinned when he saw the enemy troops withdrawing. '_I wonder who they are, though. How did they amass so many missing nin?_'

Jumping down from his seat, he landed next to some Kiri ANBU. "Yo, how did you guys hold up over here?" he drawled.

"It was more like massacre…" one ANBU commented. "They got us by surprise, but once you got down to it, they weren't all that good."

"They were most probably cannon fodder. I saw some more intense fighting going on near the Mizukage tower." Naruto told them. "The thing is, the Mizukage wasn't even in her office."

"Duh, since I was fighting right next to you."

Naruto turned to see Kasumi strolling towards the assembled shinobi. "You didn't do so bad yourself, _envoy_."

He laughed. "Akatsukigakure is strong. See what even an envoy can do? Imagine how strong our Hikage is."

"Showoff…" Kasumi muttered. She turned to the remaining shinobi. "ANBU, reinforce the walls, make sure no one else gets in. The rest, tend to the wounded and help clear the rubble."

"Hai, Mizukage-sama!"

Akane and Hikaru appeared from an alleyway and made their way to Naruto.

"You seem to have done a fine job of killing here." Hikaru commented.

Grimacing, Akane pointed down the alley they came from. "It wasn't all that hard, but they have sheer numbers against us. If it weren't for a few Jounin that were passing by, we would've been toast."

Naruto turned to Kasumi and sighed. "Thanks for keeping my subordinates alive, whether it was directly or indirectly. I owe you one."

She waved the comment away. "You are diplomatic envoys from another country. It wouldn't do for you to get injured in a civil war." She paused and looked at the mass of blood on the floor. "Impressive technique you pulled off. I've never seen anything like it."

"You wouldn't. They were secret techniques passed down by my senseis."

Hikaru interrupted their conversation. "I feel they have fallen back for today. They will not attack again, while you're at your peak of awareness."

"Damn missing nin…" cursed Kasumi. "They rebelled because a _female_ became Mizukage."

An ANBU dropped down in front of them. "Mizukage-sama. The enemy has retreated past our detection range. What are our orders?"

"Continue to stay alert, but cut down the ANBU on the walls by half. Those that are free are to tend to the wounded, interrogate prisoners, and clear rubble."

"Hai!" he saluted before disappearing again.

Naruto turned to Akane and Hikaru. "_You two scout out the area around the hotel. I'll take care of some personal business._"

"_Hai, Hikage-sama!_" they said in stereo.

Turning to a wall, he connected back to Akatsukigakure. "_Akira._"

"_Yes, Naruto-san?_"

"_We are currently at Kiri, which was attacked. Roughly thirty of their forces rebelled, and they have hired external shinobi. I suggest you send down the H.A.C.S._"

"_Excuse me Naruto-san, but I was not present when you made the announcement, as I was overseeing the construction of the walls. What is the H.A.C.S?_"

"_Heavy Assault Crack Squadron._"

"_Hai, Naruto-san. Can you send a mental image of your current position so that they can Shunshin there?_"

"_Yep. Just remember, I'm hiding under the alias of an envoy during my stay. Don't reveal my cover._"

"_Understood._"

Akira and Hikaru returned to report, three minutes later.

"Outside the hotel, clear."

"Inside the hotel, clear."

"The H.A.C.S is going to teleport inside the city." Naruto told them.

Hikaru stiffened. "Is that really necessary?"

"What's H.A.C.S?" Kasumi said as she walked up to him.

Naruto froze, and turned around. "Why are you still here?"

"I felt that I should oversee your protection, as it's my duty as Kage to keep you safe. So tell me, what's H.A.C.S?"

Suddenly, in the middle of the street, a huge whirlwind of leaves appeared. It subsided, revealing fifty Akatsukigakure ANBU in black cloaks, all with sharp claws embroidered on their shoulders. '_Oh yeah, I still need to think up tattoos for them…_' Naruto thought.

An ANBU with a red claw on his shoulders stepped forward. "Heavy Assault Crack Squadron, reporting for duty."

Kasumi 'oh'ed. '_So that's what H.A.C.S means. Heavy Assault? Don't tell me they specialize in destructive jutsus…_' she thought furiously. '_I don't need more damage to the city after what's happened today._'

Naruto handed the captain a map with symbols on it. "Take your posts at these strategic points and report to me every two hours, Captain."

Accepting it, the captain saluted before the entire squadron spread out.

"What of the Hikage?" a concerned Kasumi asked. "Will he still be coming?" '_Damn it to hell, if this rebellion causes them to withdraw from the alliance-writing…_'

Naruto nodded, relieving Kasumi. "Yes, he will arrive on schedule in two days."

"I do hope you get this situation under control beforehand though…" Hikaru suggested. "It wouldn't do Kiri any good if Hikage-sama thought you were weak."

Kasumi cursed. '_Why did the rebellion have to occur _now_ of all times?_'

While she reflected on her thoughts, a Kiri ANBU came running up to them. "Mizukage-sama! There is a missing nin in the town plaza, demanding for us to stand down!"

Naruto immediately set off ahead of everyone else, intent on seeing this missing nin. Using the rooftops, he quickly approached the plaza and heard the sound of battle. Dropping down, his jaw dropped when he saw a familiar man in a cloud-embroidered cloak with a large, bandaged sword kicking away one of the ANBU. Naruto rubbed his eyes, and looked again to see the nin still there. "K-Kisame-san?" Naruto asked incredulously, wanting to make sure.

The man whirled around, his eyes widening. "I'd know that voice anywhere! Gaki, what are you doing in Kiri?"

"I should ask you the same thing!" Naruto countered.

"I asked you first, so you tell me _first_!" Kisame growled back in annoyance.

"Che," he muttered. "I'm here on behalf of Akatsukigakure no Sato to ally with Kiri."

Kisame stared at Naruto. "Akatsukigakure?" he croaked. "Since when did we have a ninja village?"

"Since right after the attack."

Just then, Kasumi, Hikaru, and Akane dropped down next to Naruto. "Hoshigaki Kisame, what are _you_ doing here?" Kasumi growled.

Kisame looked at the three newly arrived shinobi, then back to Naruto. "Oi, gaki. Who're they?"

Grinning, he began introducing each of them. "Bakuhatsuteki Kasumi, Mizukage of Kiri. Tsuyoi Hikaru, bodyguard number one, and Kiwadoi Akane, bodyguard number two." He then turned to the other three. "This is Hoshigaki Kisame, S-Class Kiri missing nin. Back when I was with Akatsuki, he was my superior in strength and rank."

Naruto suddenly froze, reminded of something. He turned to Kisame and asked a question he had longed to find the answer to. "Kisame-san, what about I-"

"He's alive, kid." Kisame grunted. "He's recovering from extensive Mangekyou use."

Naruto sighed in relief. "So, what brings you to Kiri?" he asked again.

"I came here to get some supplies. You know, medical stuff, food… but…" he pointed at the ANBU and growled, "…these guys attacked me on sight."

"What do you expect?" Naruto grumbled. "You're an S-Class missing nin, and Kiri was just recently attacked by a missing nin army."

"Yah, yah, whatever." Looking around, Kisame turned back to Naruto. "Where are the others?"

"Split up at Fire Country."

Kasumi stared at the two of them. "Alright, what's going on here?" she demanded. "What the hell are you talking about?"

While Naruto explained the first part and conveniently left out the second, Kisame squinted his eyes at Kasumi. He muttered, "Is it just me, or is the Mizukage a female _AND_ a midget?"

"It's not just you…" Naruto sighed. "Kasumi-san is thirteen years old and the first ever female Mizukage."

"This is an OUTRAGE!" the blue skinned man roared. "Sure, I can understand having a female Mizukage, but she's just a freaking_ CHILD!_"

Veins appeared on Akane and Kasumi's foreheads. "Just because we're young, doesn't mean we're weak OLD MAN!" the two yelled in sync.

Standing silently, Kisame gazed emotionlessly upon the two girls. '_Temperamental…_' After a long while, he smirked and nudged Naruto playfully. "Oho! Hanging out with the Mizukage I see! I suppose you do prefer a female's company over mine, but don't be doing any rough things, you sly fox you!"

Kasumi immediately jumped onto Kisame, knocking him down and bashing him on the head. "YOU PERVERT!" she screamed. The sudden attack caused the ANBU to leave quickly, in fear that she would turn on them next, as they were also male.

While she continued beating Kisame, the word reminded Naruto of the 'incident' that had occurred earlier that day. His face turned bright red, and he looked away from Kasumi, not wanting to be further reminded. Hikaru noticed this, and put two and two together. '_He disappeared a while ago… we don't know where he went or what he did. Now when he looks at Kasumi-san, he blushes…_' Hikaru gasped aloud. '_He _didn't!_ Did he?_' Blanching, he began walking quickly back to the hotel, taking a confused Akane with him. '_May Kami-sama help you, Hikage-sama..._'

Finished beating Kisame to a pulp, Kasumi turned to see the retreating backs of Hikaru and Akane, leaving her alone with a crimson-faced Naruto. "Why are you blushing like that?" she asked, curiosity peaked.

"A-Ah, y-y-you s-see… uh, earlier I, um… d-did something…" Naruto stuttered, eyes pointedly staring at the ground. "What did you do?" Kasumi asked suspiciously. Naruto paused for a moment, before turning around and bolting off only to get caught in a headlock by Kasumi before he could move more than a meter. "What. Did. You. Do?" she growled slowly.

He struggled futilely for a bit, then sighed, relaxing his body and surrendering to the inevitable. Mumbling something under his breath, he tensed when she tightened her grip. "What did you say? I'm sorry but I didn't catch it."

"IwassneakingaroundyourhouseintheventilationandIsawyounakedintheshower!" Naruto belted out.

Kasumi stood stock still, separating the long sentence into understandable words and phrases. "You… were sneaking around my house?" she said slowly. Naruto nodded. Translating the second part of the sentence, she gasped, flushing deeply. Noticing the sudden weakening in her grip, Naruto broke free and bolted off towards the area where Kisame lay.

Grinding her teeth in anger, she flickered behind Kisame. By some sort of fate, Naruto, in his rush, tripped over Samehada. Propelled both by his speed of running and impact of the sword, he knocked a surprised Kasumi over and they both landed in a heap.

'Something… I landed on something soft…' Naruto thought, rubbing against it. 'I can't seem to place what it feels like…' Opening his eyes slowly, they bulged out. He had, unfortunately for him, landed on Kasumi's chest. "Gah!" he cried out as he got off of her quickly, blushing. Face a very dark red, Kasumi got up and… "GUH!" punched Naruto five meters away, causing him to collapse onto the floor as he reached it.

"Pervert…" she muttered, and sighed. "Kami-sama must really hate me if this has to happen to me…" Sighing again, she covered her face with her hands. Naruto picked himself up at a snail's pace. At the same time he recovered, a H.A.C.S ANBU dropped down.

"H-Naruto…san. We have located the missing nins' main base of operation. It lies just outside their detection range, in the direction of the west gate, and is quite sizeable. What are our orders?"

Setting his mouth into a grim frown, he glanced over to Kisame and Kasumi before turning back to face the ANBU. "Gather up as many shinobi as you can, Akatsuki or Kiri, it doesn't matter. Meet at the west gate in thirty minutes."

"Hai!" The ANBU saluted before leaving.

Turning back to a still annoyed Kasumi and knocked-out Kisame, he smiled weakly. "I apologize for what just happened, let us please set it behind us. Alright?"

Silence greeted him.

"I'll take that as a yes… Anyway, gather as many of your best shinobi at the west gate or here, it doesn't matter."

Still silent, she continued glaring at him but sent a Suiton jutsu into the sky regardless. Immediately, seven shinobi landed in front of them.

"Who're they?" a surprised Naruto asked. "Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu…" muttered Kisame, who had finally regained consciousness. He looked them over, and grinned. "Only two of them are from the original seven, the rest I haven't seen before."

The two said members growled when they saw Kisame. "What is _he_ doing here?" one of two asked, pointing at Kisame.

"He'll be your team leader for the duration of this mission," Kasumi replied shortly.

"But Mizukage-sama!" the second one protested. "He's a _traitor_!"

"He's aligned with Akatsukigakure, with whom we're trying to _ally_. Don't screw it up for the rest of us." Turning, she handed a folder to Naruto. "Here are the profiles and information for them, use this to plan the attack."

Naruto sifted through the folder. '_Interesting…_' he thought, as he read through it.

'_Classified Information: Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu_

_1. Fuubi Katsu, an original member. Male, short, spiky blue hair, deep blue eyes, and age thirty-five. Strongly built, he uses a zanbatou to slice enemies in half, preferably at the waist. He has high stamina, and was the first to speak earlier… Has a strong sense of loyalty, and is patient most of the time. Likes to meditate, and will hurt anyone who interrupts him during meditation._

_2. Kyousei Kyo, also an original member. He's male, bald-headed, onyx eyes, and age twenty-nine. He has a lanky build, and uses a combination of kodachis and daggers to strike through enemies quickly and wear them down. Low stamina, but high-speed, and was also the second to speak before. He is not as patient as Katsu, but he isn't temperamental either. He loves following orders to the letter._

_3. Mamori Yori, a new member. He's male, has short raven hair in a ponytail, cerulean blue eyes, and age twenty-three. Is it just my imagination, or are they getting younger? Anyway, he's lightly built, and uses a single katana. He fights defensively to wear out the opponent's stamina. He is hard to anger, but is deadly when he is. Usually fights to neutralize not kill. He likes reading Icha-Icha books…_

_4. Buatsui Amaya, new member. Female, has shoulder-length blue hair, chestnut colored eyes, and is age eighteen. An average female build, and uses dual-kodachis. Not as fast as Kyo, but she is still fast. She fights to kill the enemy quickly and move on to the next without hassle, and is very temperamental. She is deathly afraid of rabbits…_

_5. Shinsei Izumi, new. Female, waist-length snow-white hair, pale silver eyes… creepy, age twelve. Damn, do they let kids into the Swordsmen nowadays? A fragile build, uses a katana along with ninjutsu and genjutsu to supplement her kenjutsu. She likes guys, especially cute ones… Okay… When angered, she goes into either a tantrum or an insane killing spree. Geez, this is one weird girl… NEXT!_

_6. Kanbashi Kaede, new. She is a female, shoulder-length blond hair, ocean blue eyes, and age twenty-six. She looks weak, but she uses her unknown monstrous strength to wield a large zanbatou at frightening speeds… Sounds like Tsunade… She does not like guys in general, and likes to watch chick-flicks, Che. _

_7. Fudan Shin, new. He is male, short brown hair, violet-colored eyes, and is age twenty-eight. He's got an average build, and wields a single katana gracefully, but simply. His strategy is to use his enemy's mistakes against them. He has a thing for cute girls, and also reads Icha-Icha books. Damn that Jiraiya! Wait, that reminds me that I need to learn that jutsu too… DAMN!_'

While Naruto continued to read through the folder, Izumi leaned over to Amaya (If you're confused because of countless OC's in the chapter, read the list above!). "Who's that guy?" she whispered.

Amaya shrugged. "I have no idea. He has no headband either." Undiscouraged, Izumi walked over to Katsu. "Who're they?" she asked him. Sighing, Katsu glared at Kisame before turning to face the girl. "That kid, I have no idea who he is. Shark-face, on the other hand, I know personally. Hoshigaki Kisame, he was a former member of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu. He assassinated several important daimyos before fleeing the country, which is how he earned his nickname 'Daimyo Killer Kisame'."

"Wow…" she mouthed out, before moving on to the Mizukage. "Who's that guy, Mizukage-sama?"

Kasumi huffed. "An asshole and a jerk."

This caused Izumi to scowl. "Name and village, please."

"He's Uzumaki Naruto, the Kurodenkou, and former member of an organization called Akatsuki, and is now an advance envoy of Akatsukigakure. He is here with his 'H.A.C.S ANBU'."

Izumi 'oh'ed and returned to her spot as he finished reading and looked up. "You people are quite… unique," he mumbled.

"Unique?" Kaede echoed. "What do you mean by that?"

"Strange…" he whispered. "Anyway, gather your shinobi and meet at the west gate in 0200 hours, at 1800. Dismissed!"

* * *

Two hours later, at six o'clock… 

Evening time, and the shinobi of Assault groups 1,2,3, and 4 were waiting at the west gate for the designated time. Assault groups 1 and 2 consisted of three hundred Kiri Jounin each, and Assault group 3 was made up of three hundred Kiri ANBU. Assault group 4 included Naruto, Akane, Hikaru, Kisame, Kasumi, the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu, and the fifty H.A.C.S ANBU of Akatsukigakure, totaling sixty-two shinobi.

Naruto stood at the front, directly at the west gate, and raised a hand to silence the shinobi. "Assault groups 1 and 2 will attack the enemy's base of operations _head on_. Assault group 3 will split into two and flank the base on both sides. Assault group 4 will bypass the chaos and enter the enemy bunker itself to neutralize the leader. Any questions?"

Izumi raised her hand. "Yes?" Naruto pointed at her. "What's your question?"

She smiled while she calmly said, "What kind of boxers do you wear?" Naruto stood silently before turning away. "Any questions about the _attack_? No? Good then, let's go!"

The nine hundred sixty two shinobi of the joint forces of Akatsuki and Kiri left the west gate at six o'clock sharp. Traveling quickly, the three groups split up halfway to the destination. It was around eight o'clock, and Assault group 4 was closing in to the enemy positions.

"So…" Naruto tried to strike up some conversation to ease the tension. "What did you set the signal to be?" The group was silent for a bit as they concentrated on navigating through the thick mist that enveloped the area. "Explosions," Kyo replied.

Grumbling, Naruto pulled out a map. "How _not _flashy," he muttered as he tried to pinpoint their location. "Flashy it may not be, but at least it's more effective than wasting a jutsu for a simple signal," Yori argued. "That chakra could be better put to use by taking out several enemy shinobi.

"To someone like me, that amount of chakra is nothing!" Naruto bragged. Shin raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"Yeah, I have a monstrous chakra capacity," he informed them.

Kasumi scoffed. "I've got large chakra reserves as well."

"I have no doubt you have large reserves but…" Hikaru started.

Akane finished the sentence. "…Naruto-san has larger."

"There's only a few people in the world with chakra reserves as large as the brat." Kisame butted in. "He probably has as much as me, and I'm nearly two and a half times his age."

"Is that even possible?" Amaya asked in disbelief.

Frowning, Katsu took the map from Naruto. "Anything is possible, Amaya, especially concerning us shinobi." After a few more minutes with the map, he rolled it tightly. "Alright, we're on the right path."

"Ten minutes from our destination!" one of the H.A.C.S ANBU relayed to them.

Naruto waved him away. "Understood. Dismissed."

"So… what's the plan?" Akane asked. "What the hell do we do once we're _inside_ the bunker?"

Holding up a hand, the group traveled for a few more minutes before finally arriving at their destination. Landing on the floor, he turned to face the shinobi of Assault group 4.

"Here's the plan. Kisame goes in first and tears through the enemies as the first assault. Akane, Hikaru, and the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu goes in next and kills off any stragglers. Conserve your chakra and stick to the old-fashioned slice and dice strategy. Me, the Mizukage, and the H.A.C.S ANBU will take point after the enemy's initial defense is breached and spread out in all directions. When you find the leader, radio in your position. Any questions?"

Izumi raised a hand, firing off a question before Naruto could stop her. "Do you like busty girls?"

Naruto and Kasumi wept anime tears. One wept in sadness, the other in shame.

"Why, Kami-sama? Why must you torture me like this?" he cried out.

"What the hell possessed me to put this weirdo on the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu?" Kasumi sobbed.

"Anyways, are there any questions about the _battle plans_?" Naruto returned to the topic. "No?" A shockwave rippled through Group 4's position. "Then, LET'S GO!"

Assault group 4 left stealthily undercover of the night, and in two minutes' time found themselves outside a large base.

"How the hell did they build something this big without no one taking notice?" Kyo said aloud. "Seriously…"

Performing a high jump, the members of Group 4 landed next to the bunker and quickly entered it after blowing the steel door open with several explosive tags. Kisame and Naruto walked down the passage and entered a room to see… two hundred enemy shinobi, waiting for them.

"Well, shit. ATTACK!"

---Kisame---

Kisame charged forward into the group of shinobi. "UWAAAH!" he roared, cleaving through four enemies. Speeding through enemy lines, the missing nin soon found their numbers dwindling, and fast.

"Is that the best you can do?" he laughed loudly as he continued his killing spree. "Unstoppable! Amazing! Godlike!" Kisame roared out as he killed shinobi left and right.

"**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!**" Just like in the Akatsuki base, he creamed a dozen or so shinobi from the jutsu.

Finishing up with the shinobi he was fighting, Kisame heard a faint noise. Turning, he saw a door opening to reveal… dozens more shinobi. "Aw dammit, this is just like a week ago…" Kisame moaned. "Regardless, you're all… MINCEMEAT!" Flickering into the middle of a half-dozen shinobi, he swung Samehada to kill all of them. "Sheesh, and they call themselves jounin…"

"Actually, they're Chuunin that call themselves Jounin…" A man with dark red hair clashed swords with Kisame.

"You're… a Hidden Stone missing nin…" Kisame growled. "I'll tell you what. Since you're from the Stone, I'll give you the pleasure of dying, one limb at a time!"

He sprung forward, swinging Samehada downward. The nin rolled to his right and brought up his katana to block another swing. Grinning maniacally, the nin stomped his foot to the floor. Confused, Kisame was about to move forward when a large chunk of stone hit his chin.

"Bastard!"

Grinning, the nin stomped his foot onto the floor several more times. "This'll be fun, shark freak!"

---Akane---

"Hyah!" Akane heaved out, slicing an enemy from head to toe. "C'mon, can't you men even stop a freaking thirteen-year-old GIRL?" she screamed at them. Facing off with fifteen shinobi, Akane grinned. "Show me what you've got, assholes!"

Ducking under a kunai swing, Akane kneed the offender in the crotch. While he was on his knees, she cut off his head and flipped over another swing by a second shinobi. "Don't tell me this is the best you guys can do?" she muttered to herself as she rolled to her left and avoided a swinging katana. "Urgh!" she grit out as a kunai hit her arm. '_These guys are easy as hell, but there are so many of them. I thought there were only two hundred, but more keep flowing in!_'

"Bring it on!" she snarled, ignoring a kunai slice on her arm. '_Sorry Hikage, but it seems I've been forced to use my jutsu._'

Zooming through hand seals, she waited until a large amount of shinobi had surrounded her.

"**Shintou Shinsei!**"

A burst of white lightning shot from around her, stopping the shinobis' movements.

"**Denkousekka no Jutsu!**"

Moving at speeds invisible to the naked eye, she cut down all the paralyzed shinobi. She stopped for a moment, analyzing the situation they were in. Eyes widening, she whipped around only to get pummeled across the room by a large fist.

---Hikaru---

"Come." Hikaru said emotionlessly towards the eight shinobi standing in front of him. "Prepare to meet your deaths."

Wordlessly, the missing nins shot forward at him. Smirking, Hikaru settled into a sword style. "**Tsuyoiken: Furuiryu.**"

Kicking up his katana, he shoved it into the first man's heart. Ducking under a kodachi, he leapt up and sliced another's head off. Shifting his katana so that it now pointed down, he deflected a kunai thrust. Flipping his hand, the katana returned to its original position. The shinobi who had attacked Hikaru had no time to retaliate before his heart was stabbed.

'_It sometimes gets boring when I only stab through the heart and decapitate them, yet my style was only made for those kind of kills…_' Hikaru thought, extremely bored. Smirking, he flipped off the remaining shinobi, sending them into frenzy. "Show me what you've got!"

---Naruto---

'_Why, oh why, does there have to be so many? It's like the Akatsuki base all over again._' Naruto thought, as he cut down another two nin. '_It's a never-ending flow… were they expecting us?_' Parrying a large zanbatou, he charged his katana with chakra and cut through the lightweight metal, killing the wielder.

'_At this rate, sixty-two shinobi won't be enough to even find the leader._'

"**Uzumaki Naruto: Kiroi Gufuu!**"

Spinning slowly, he gained momentum and began cutting through dozens of the shinobi. The remaining survivors backed up, while Naruto slowed down.

"What the hell are you?" one man yelled.

"**Kurodenkou Nagashi.**"

His body emitting black lightning, Naruto disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"R-RUN! IT'S THE KURODEN-GAAAAH!" the man screamed in pain as his body was clipped into several pieces by the lightning. The remaining nins whirled around, trying to locate Naruto. The only warning they got before their demise was a blur of black.

'_Funny, I'm not even winded and I've probably killed over seventy nins._' Naruto thought as he ran at high speeds toward another group of shinobi. '_I guess that's the result of years of jutsu experimentation and manipulation._'

He had finished off the second group, and was about to move to the third when a large stone spike shot from the ground, slamming his stomach. "OOF!" Naruto flew across the room, but took minimal damage because the electrical current in his body had absorbed the force.

---Kasumi---

With the use of a single katana, Kasumi used her speed to her advantage. While an average kunoichi would normally concentrate on strength, she focused on speed. After all, she _wasn't_ a normal kunoichi.

Flipping over a nin's head, she sliced down on the shoulder of another, and then spun around to decapitate the nin she jumped over. Stabbing the already wounded nin, she picked him up and kicked him off the sword, sending his body crashing into two others.

"**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!**" Using the water from Kisame's left over attacks, the dragon pounded through a half dozen shinobi.

In the background, she could see a blur of black, and smirked. '_If the rumors of him are anything as accurate as I've heard, then he'll be able to take care of these shinobi in no time._'

She turned around just in time to see Akane flying past her. '_What the hell?_' Looking in the direction that Akane had come from, she saw a massive stone golem, which was at least ten feet tall. '_Damn, where the hell did that come from. I'll have to_' "URK!" Kasumi grunted as Naruto flew into her abdomen, sending the both of them crashing against a wall.

---Normal POV---

"Damn that hidden Stone nin, I'll get him if it's the last thing I do!" Naruto cursed as he got up slowly.

A shockwave shook the room, and everyone stopped fighting to find out what had caused it. Cracking noises were heard, and Kasumi looked up to see hundreds of stalactites that were being held up by chakra. A resounding explosion shook the area, causing the sharp spires to fall down simultaneously on the shinobi. Naruto and Kisame's eyes bulged out when they saw what could potentially be their doom falling from the ceiling.

'_Aw, crap shit..._' everyone thought at the same time.

* * *

Well, that's chapter 8 for you. I decided to cut it off there because I'm evil. I will also repeat it; the voting will go on for one or two more chapters. Those who already voted can vote one more time. Currently, Masaki is winning by five votes. Also, if you have any questions about the current plot, don't hesitate to ask me. 

Two more things, should I incorporate the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu (Seven Swordsmen of the Mist) as semi-main characters, with developed personalities and characteristics and all that?

Also, should I keep the name Black Lightning, or change it to Dark Lightning? They are both called Kurodenkou, but the kanji is different.

**Reviews**

Thank you **BooTheGhost** for your review. Personally, I don't like Harems, plus it's harder to write them into a story. I knocked Yoshi off, but at least I didn't kill _EVERYONE_!

Thank you **kyuubi91** for your review. For your information, Kakuzu performed a back-attack to the chest area, which was eventually fatal for Yoshi.

Thank you **HiddenETC** for your review. I _have_ read Foxhound, it was a ridiculously good story. I might have… you know, used the concept, and I give all credit for the original to the author of Foxhound. And yes, paperwork sucks.

Thank you **ShenobiKageKitsune** for your review. For your information, Deidara is a guy, not a chick. -.- Whatever made you think Deidara was a girl?

Thank you **Angelic.Dark** for your review. You actually thought Itachi and Kisame died? SHAME ON YOU! They're too cool to die! Heheh.

Thank you **Sylent Viper** for your review. Yeah, it was kind of quick, but I had to implement it somewhere. Though I haven't explained it, Naruto's been building Akatsukigakure for a few years. I kept it under the low to keep it a surprise though.

Thank you **Skillz2kill** for your review. Even in the anime, Naruto acts like a child, but in battle he gets all smart and serious. Orange is an awesome color, by the way. My favorite hat and shirt are both orange, and I'm considering painting my room orange.

Thank you **harkcaster** for your review. I plan to build on all the OCs' personalities in the chapters ahead. For example, I made Kasumi temperamental because I figured I should have some… I don't know, difference in personalities amongst characters.

Thank you **sasuke1342** for your review. The Ketsueki Bunshin, unlike Kage Bunshins, have their own consciences outside the user's range, and makes decisions based on the user's mentality, which is totally superior to a Kage Bunshin, which goes nuts when the user is too far away. Also, the Ketsueki Bunshins can live on until a deathblow is dealt. That means that when matters come up such as the Bunshin pissing off one of the females, it doesn't dissipate after a hit, convincing them that it's real.

Thank you **Endolphins** for your review. Yes, I use a translator. I don't really know what the kanji sounds like, but I _do_ know that it is kurodenkou.

Thank you **Semil **for your review. You know, you make several good points there. I'd go on a limb and say that they could be together for alliance-strengthening purposes. But that's just me on a limb.

Thank you **Zarron** for your review. I will have him learn Hiraishin a bit later, and I do enjoy writing humor into the story, as well as serious scenes. As noted, she does found out about the incident.

Thank you **Serpent King** for your review. As I've answered beforehand, Haku is the same as Byakku, and Naruto wears the unknown member's ring as he/she doesn't exist in my fanfiction.

Thank you **InfinitusNyx** for your review. I try not to make them into Mary Sues, though I only have bare interpretations of Sues. I really don't know what makes a Mary Sue, a Sue. O.o

Thank you **gamersxtreme** for your review. I'm thinking of whether I should go on a time skip or write all the content in between. What say you?

I now take the time to thank all the reviewers who commented and voted. As before, I say that you aren't on the list because there's so many of you and I don't have the time to write you all up. The people on the above list are there because of a question they asked or some other.

**Vocabulary**

Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu – Seven Swordsmen of the Mist

**Fuubi** _Katsu_ – **Overwhelming **_Victory_

**Kyousei** _Kyo_ – **Splendid** _Excellen(t/ce)_

**Mamori **_Yori _– **Defense **_Dependence_

**Buatsui **_Amaya _– **Heavy **_Night Rain_

**Shinsei **_Izumi _– **Pure**_ Spring_

**Kanbashi **_Kaede _– **Sweet**_ Maple_

**Fudan **_Shin – _**Always **_True_

Kurodenkou – Black Lightning

**Jutsu List**

**Chiton: Chiame no Jutsu (Blood Element: Blood Rain Technique) – A-Rank – A technique that summons blood in the form of rain. This allows the user to use an almost unlimited amount of blood in his or her techniques. The rain of blood is so thick that it reduces the enemy's sight and hearing, which helps to disguise one's position or serve as a distraction.**

**Chishio Bakuretsu (Explosive Blood) – A-Rank – The user causes blood outside the body to explode. This technique only works with the user's own blood or summoned blood, thus the user cannot just kill enemies and explode their blood. **

**Suiton: Suishouha (Water Element: Rising Blast) – A-Rank – The user creates water from their chakra. Because of the massive amounts of water created, the water then forms a mini tsunami, crushing all in its path. The water does not dispel, and changes the landscape to a more liquid-type field.**

**Tsuyoiken: Furuiryu (Mighty Blade: Ancient Dragon) – Clan Style – The user settles into a null position, with their sword at a forty-five degree angle to the ground. When an enemy nears, the user kicks up the sword with his/her foot and thrusts at chakra-enhanced speed to kill the enemy in one swift blow. When facing multiple enemies, the user twists and turns after the first strike to deliver quick, efficient finishing blows to the head. **

**Shintou Shinsei (Electric Nova) – B-Rank – The user creates and expands a magnetic field using their chakra, and explodes the field, creating white lightning that spreads out over a five-meter radius to cause disruption in the nerve system or temporary paralysis. **

**Denkousekka no Jutsu (Lightning Speed Technique) – B-Rank – The user sends electrically modified chakra throughout their body, stimulating faster physical and mental responses. With almost the same purpose as the Celestial Gates, this jutsu causes the user to move at much faster speeds, but without the muscle tear of the Gates.**

**Uzumaki Naruto: Kiroi Gufuu (Uzumaki Naruto: Yellow Typhoon) – Unique Style – Naruto sets his feet into a wide stance, and begins spinning slowly, adding more chakra to his spin as it goes faster. Once the technique is completed, Naruto becomes a spinning orange and yellow typhoon of blades. The chakra in the spin deflects weapons and jutsu, and imbues his chakra fangs at the same time, creating a deadly combo.**

**Kurodenkou Nagashi (Black Lightning Current) – S-Rank, Unique – The user sends modified chakra throughout their body, similar to the Denkousekka no Jutsu. Taking the same actions as improving response time and speed, the technique also uses the body as an electrical current. The modified electricity, having nowhere to go, spread outside the body. Because of the slight demonic modification, the electricity outside the body automatically targets enemies based on the user's memory, and has the same cutting power as the Chidori.**

A/N: I'm not Japanese, and I don't take any classes, so if you spot any translation mistakes, please do not hesitate to tell me.

Thank you for reading the latest installment of Black Lightning. Look out next week for the next chapter: Chapter 9: Kiri's Assault Part 2.

After you have read the chapter, please comment/review anything you find lacking. I will not flame out constructive criticism, mainly because it helps my writing. I'll be releasing a chapter a week, at the least. Stay tuned!

Ja ne - Benney

A/N2: Starting next chapter, I will cease to reply to reviews. The review section will now be a Question and Answer section. I'll be transitioning the rest of the chapters to this setting later.


	10. Akatsuki's Strength

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 9: Kiri's Assault Part 2 - Akatsuki's Strength

'_Thoughts_'

"_Thoughts speech or Telepathy_"

"Speech"

'**Kyuubi**'

"**Half Demon**"

**Sound Effect**

**Author: **I've modified the sentence types up there to only include the types that are in the chapter itself. Thanks to a reader for telling me that it's nin, not nins. Japanese words don't have plurality.

On a side note, I began an 'Enemy Ranking' list at the bottom, describing the ranks of enemies shown in the chapter, and some description. Oh, and I removed the stats thing at the top. Annoying to update. –Shifty eyes-

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, merely the several OC's that I painstakingly made up. **

**"Outer Crotch?"**

**

* * *

**

"**Suiton: Suijinheki!**"

"**Doton: Doryu Heki!**"

Naruto and Kasumi quickly performed defensive jutsu around themselves and the other members of Assault Group 4. The earthen wall formed a thick dome over a semi-sphere of water.

Silence ensued, and one of the Akatsuki ANBU decided to check the surroundings because of the lack of painful screams. Creating an opening in the water and earth defenses with a toss of two separate explosive kunai, he looked out. Grimacing to himself, he returned to report to the blond.

Now, the reason the defenses created holes with merely explosive kunai, is because the chakra coats the outside, making the inside vulnerable to attack. Of course, the smart shinobi, would make domes to prevent this, right? The downside is, you have no visibility whatsoever. To that extent, Naruto swore to never use enclosed defense ever again.

"Naruto-san, all the surviving enemies have disappeared, and so have the stalactites," he said shortly, with a salute.

Cursing, Naruto checked the outside for himself. Looking out, he could see that the ANBU was right. Only the dead bodies from the previous fight littered the floor.

"Damn! They must have fooled us with a genjutsu!"

Naruto turned to the tall, blue-skinned man that was currently his partner. "Can you _smell_ the enemy?"

Kisame sniffed the air, and then gave a thumbs up, a wide grin on his face. Strangely, it looked like a baring of teeth on the man.

"Yeah, I smell their wounded. They went through the second passage on the right." He said this while pointing to said door, a single one amongst five or so other doors. He leaned a bit closer to Naruto. "I also smelled a bit of _clay_."

Naruto nodded, and turned to view the ninja in the task force. '_Good, we got no losses, just wounds._'

"Alright, into the door, we're going ninja hunting!" he announced.

Running near the back of the group with Kisame, he waited for the tall man to swerve sharply, taking them into a new path. This one, unlike all the others, was paved in earth. There was not one bit of metal. Because of the lack of the scent-reducing metal, Naruto began sniffing the air with his lesser sense of smell (A shark's is better).

"I can smell the clay now, too," he muttered to Kisame. Turning another corner and into a doorway, a bloody sight lay before them.

Corpses were strewn all over the floor, leaving the two no choice but to walk on the bodies. The bodies themselves were deprived of random limbs, and their innards hung around the ceiling. Blood covered sand covered the walls and the bodies, along with a large clump of sand on the ceiling. Sudden movement behind them sent Naruto and Kisame into battle stances, prepared to take on any enemy.

"Oh… hello, Naruto-san, Kisame-san."

Naruto looked up to see Tobi hanging from a large hole in the ceiling, the rather childish Akatsuki trainee caught in a net of sand.

"Could you perhaps get me down? Gaara-san threw me up here so suddenly…"

Kisame sweat-dropped and cut the sand holding Tobi with Samehada.

"Where are Gaara and Deidara anyways?" Kisame grunted, while Tobi picked himself up from the floor and dusted himself off.

"I'm back, Tobi! Did you have fun _hanging around_, yeah?"

Deidara entered the room and froze, his hand automatically coming up to point at the two newcomers.

"What are you two doing here?"

Sand flowed around Deidara and pulled him down, saving him from a horizontal swing by Kisame.

"I should be the one asking you that, you retard! And on another note, that pun just _sucked_." Kisame roared.

While Deidara and Kisame argued, Naruto moseyed next to Tobi.

"Hey, what's your face like, under that mask? Can I see it?"

"Sure, Naruto-san!"

Tobi's hand slowly moved up to his mask, and Naruto was just about to get a glimpse of his face when…

**SLICE! **

Samehada cut through the ceiling, causing dust and smoke to sweep over the entire room.

"**Fuuton: Daitoppa!**"

The smoke was blown away and Naruto looked around wildly to see Tobi with his mask no longer off.

"Remember Naruto-san, I only take my mask off for a person once."

Naruto face-vaulted. Getting up, he began advancing towards Kisame, fangs in hand.

"Now's not the time for infighting," Gaara muttered, his sand flowing between the two swordsmen. "We have renegades to slaught- I mean... defeat."

Eyebrow raised, Naruto stared questioningly at the redhead but kept his mouth shut.

"We're nukenin too. What reason do we have for fighting other nukenin?" Deidara grumbled.

Kisame grunted in annoyance. "Blondie here decided to go join a shinobi village called Akatsukigakure. I _might_ decide to join..."

"Oh, that reminds me!" Tobi nearly yelled out. "Sorry for yelling, but where's Itachi-san?"

"Yes, where is he?" Gaara echoed.

"Geez, do I have to tell it to everyone?" Kisame complained obnoxiously. "He Mangekyou'd the Iwa-nin's asses and now he's recuperating from severe chakra exhaustion."

A resounding explosion rocked the compound, though it was composed of stones and steel. "Well, looks like _our_ forces have engaged the enemy," Naruto predicted. "How's about we go support them?"

"Sure."

"Whatever."

"Can I blow things up?"

"Kill..."

The five shinobi flickered out of the room, unknowing of the consequences of rushing blindly into battle.

* * *

Akatsuki entered the room cautiously. The noise had died down, and none of them knew whether the Kiri or nukenin forces were victorious. Passing through a long metal hallway, they entered another room to see masses of enemy corpses littering the ground, added with a resting H.A.C.S ANBU force. The captain strode over quickly to the new arrivals. 

"Naruto-san, we await further orders," he said while saluting.

Two sets of eyebrows raised. One couldn't because he had a mask, the other didn't raise eyebrows, seeing as he had none. "All right captain, give me a status and situation report," Naruto ordered.

"We've lost five of our own troops in battle, due to their overwhelming numbers. Several others were wounded as well, but are healing and resting as we speak," the captain reported. "The nukenin's forces grow smaller, but they also become stronger as we move further into the compound. We have determined that the cannon fodder consists of Kiri-nukenin, while the stronger force is made up of Iwa nukenin. It is safe to say that not many of them know of many potent Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, or Taijutsu to match us in combat."

Naruto nodded, while a Kiri Jounin entered the room hurriedly. "Mizukage-sama! Where are you?" he called out.

"Up here, you idiot." Naruto and the Jounin looked up to see Kasumi sitting on the ceiling, upside down. "What's your report?"

Saluting, the Jounin recounted his orders. "All nukenin outside of the compound have been annihilated, but we've also sustained heavy casualties."

Silence passed, and Kasumi glared at the now silent shinobi. "Well?? Aren't you supposed to tell me what happened?"

The Jounin stood straight nervously and recalled his story.

"The attack started without a hitch, but we were swarmed by entire droves of nukenin. We destroyed them all eventually, but the Jounin forces suffered a sixty percent loss, and the ANBU force suffered a twenty-five percent loss. The statistics are based on casualties, the wounded excluded."

"Dammit!" she cursed aloud. "God damn, how are we supposed to stage an attack with such a small force? Half my standing Jounin and ANBU are gone... those bastard nukenin!"

"Calm down, will you?" Kisame yelled. "There's no need to make such a huge fuss!"

Sand pulled Kisame backwards, fast enough so that the blue-haired man avoided being stomped on.

"Let's see _you_ do a Kage's job, fish-face!" she yelled in retaliation.

Kisame growled, while waving his Samehada around slightly.

"Now you've gone too far, _girl_! You want to fight me? Bring it on!"

Before Kisame could move forward to engage, Deidara had him in a headlock.

"Watch your step, boyo! You don't want to pick a fight right now, yeah!"

Struggling fiercely, Kisame slowly wormed his way out of the hold. "Let me go, you idiotic, dumb blonde!"

**CLONG**

Kisame lay on the floor, nursing a head wound and growling in annoyance.

"Enough of this foolishness!" Naruto hissed, still holding the blunt kunai that he had used to smack Kisame on the skull. "Now's not the time for such petty feuds. And besides, blondes aren't dumb. That's just a false stereotype."

Turning to the Kiri Jounin, he said, "Go and gather all remaining forces and meet here in thirty minutes."

The shinobi nodded before running back through where he had come from.

"What's your plan, Naruto?" Gaara asked with slight curiosity.

"We're going to... take all forces and storm them past all their lines of defense."

"Are you crazy?" Kasumi yelled. "I've already said that we can't stage an attack with our forces in shambles!"

Standing up, Tobi began pacing. "We don't have enough forces to fight on equal grounds... so I assume you're going to do something involving that massive chakra capacity of yours, Naruto-san."

Naruto nodded, a grin appearing on his face. "Good job, Tobi. You've figured it out."

"Are you going to use the remaining shinobi as meat shields, like you did to get into the compound?" Gaara questioned.

Naruto smiled ruefully. "We need to conserve what forces we have left, so I came up with something else. I'm such a _genius_!"

"Just get on with it!" Kasumi grumbled. "What's the plan?"

"If I know the kid like I do, it's going to be a tricky one," Kisame muttered.

Naruto gathered all of them into a huddle. "Alright, here's the plan."

* * *

Kiri and Iwa nukenin shuffled their feet nervously. Out of the more than three thousand shinobi they had begun defending with, only eight hundred remained. The surviving ninjas feared for their lives, but knew that it was too late to try and escape. The Kiri and Akatsuki nin had taken control of the entrance, and were most probably ordered to kill any nukenin on sight. One nukenin in particular, was shaking in his sandals. 

"We're all going to die!" he wailed. "I saw the Kurodenkei and four others in Akatsuki cloaks!"

Hearing this, others soon began panicking as well.

"They're S-Class shinobi! How do we beat them?"

A tough looking commander roamed the ranks during the initial stages of panic, searching for any sort of dissent.

"Quiet, you maggots!" he barked. "Don't remember? We _recruited_ three Akatsuki members!"

The first shinobi protested, "But sir, I saw those three! They joined two Akatsuki members on the _Kiri_ side, and now they're on their way here!"

"How would you know that?" the commander growled. "It's probably just your imagina-"

The massive door on the opposite side of the room slammed open, revealing several hundred Kiri-nin. Surging out, they charged at the nukenin forces.

"DEFEND YOURSELVES!"

Nukenin met Kiri-nin, and chaotic battle erupted. The commander roared a battle cry, stabbing a Kiri shinobi, only to have his opponent disappear in a cloud of smoke.

**POOF.**

"What in the..." he rasped out.

Turning, he could see others noticing the problem as well. The realization hit him like a hammer. "THEY'RE KAGE BUNSHINS!"

An explosion tore an entire wall away, revealing the forty-five remaining H.A.C.S ANBU.

"FIRE!"

They each went rapidly through seals. Dozens of elemental attacks flew to the combating clones and nukenin.

"The clones are decoys! SCATTER!"

Sadly, the commander's order came too late. The fresh and diverse Akatsuki ninjas chucked one jutsu after another at the tightly knit group of nukenin, slaughtering large amounts. In the face of annihilation, the remaining nukenin, half as many as before, turned tail and bolted further into the compound.

The smoke set into the air by the techniques settled, revealing widespread destruction. Dead ninjas lay everywhere, bodies partly to fully intact, depending on what technique hit them. Kiri-nin walked amongst the corpses, re-supplying their dwindling resources, replenishing their stocks of kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, and many other necessities of battle. Naruto staggered in from the destroyed wall that the Akatsuki ANBU had created, groaning.

"I don't know about any of you, but making hundreds of Kage Bunshin, with thirty different facial and body variations is tiring as hell."

"Complain later. We've got a job to do," Kasumi muttered. "We still have yet to see the commander of this 'joint'."

Tobi bounded up to the two Kage's bubbling with excitement. "That was fun, yeah! Let's do it again, yeah?"

He immediately received a fist on the head, courtesy of Deidara.

"Don't you dare mock me, yeah. If you do, I'll kill you, yeah."

Gaara growled darkly, giving both shinobi the hint to stop bickering.

"Kasumi's right," Naruto said while sitting down to rest a bit. "We still need to eliminate their leader. What's your status?"

"We're still fresh!" Tobi, Deidara, and Kisame shouted in unison.

"I am... fresh," Gaara said afterwards. "I'm still ready to murd... I mean... fight."

Hikaru walked up to the group of S-Class ninjas. "I'm still raring' to go as well. Akane received an injury during the first assault, so she won't be fighting this time around."

"The Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu and I merely suffered mild injuries. We can still fight," Kasumi informed them. "Izumi in particular is quite excited." She then spotted the fact that Naruto was still panting. "What about you, Naruto? You think you can fight?"

Said blonde sat up and groaned. "I've got to be at around thirty percent chakra. I'm still coming, though."

Tobi moved to argue against it, but was stopped by Kisame.

"Naruto still needs to vent anger on those nukenin, especially the ones from Iwagakure. Remember, Akatsuki was like a sort of... _displaced family_ to him..." The blue-haired man trailed off, while Tobi nodded silently in acknowledgement.

Naruto walked slowly to the exit that the nukenin had used, and looked back.

"Well? We're heading out. _Now._"

The Kiri and Akatsuki ninjas went quickly through the exit, leaving the injured behind to recuperate and wait for the others on the return trip. That is... if they were victorious.

* * *

Naruto and the remaining ninjas rushed through the halls, intent on catching up. 

"We're going all out. Don't hesitate to perform any jutsu, unless it's one that you don't have the chakra for," Naruto ordered. "If you aren't smart enough to dodge or even distinguish friendly fire, you don't deserve the title of 'elite'. Understood?"

"Sir, yes sir!" the several hundred ninjas chorused.

The now 'small-to-medium' sized assault force burst out of a doorway, only to meet face to face with several dozen nukenin in the middle of performing hand seals.

"Everybody, SCATTER!"

The ninjas still standing at the doorway were bombarded with spires of earth and torrents of water, halting their advance to an all time low.

Naruto himself jumped up and stuck to the ceiling with chakra, viewing the battle. Looking further into the large room, he spotted a rough looking Iwa-nin. He was quite large in fact, at a height of around six and a half feet (6'6"), and had a well built body. The blonde assumed that all Iwa-nin had either black or brown hair, with the occasional random color, because this one also had brown hair like most others.

"_That must be the leader... I'm going in._"

The ANBU telepathed their confirmation and returned to the battle at hand.

Running across the ceiling and past the unsuspecting nukenin on the floor below, Naruto smirked.

'_No one ever thinks to look up and below in the heat of battle..._'

Dropping down after a certain point, he faced the supposed nukenin leader, who merely smiled at his entrance.

"So... the infamous _Kurodenkei_ wishes to fight with me? I'm honored."

Naruto said nothing, merely unsleeving his two chakra fangs. The nukenin smiled lightly, and fifty lesser nukenin appeared around him in a semicircle, all of them tense, waiting for an attack that they predicted would come.

And come it did. Naruto sprinted forward, feeling confident for a reason he couldn't currently comprehend. As he neared the fifty-one nukenin, water, explosive clay, and sand fell from the sky, bombing the area and taking out five nukenin that weren't paying attention to any 'out-of-place' noises. The remaining ninjas went through hand seals, yelling out a variety of jutsus. Twisting and turning, Naruto ducked under a **Doton: Doryuudan no Jutsu** volley, leapt over a **Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu**, and barely avoided capture in a **Suiton: Suroi no Jutsu**.

'_Sheesh, and I thought Kage Bunshin were annoying opponents..._'

The leader began barking orders as Naruto closed in on his position.

"Leave the Kurodenkei to me! The rest of you, attack the others!"

With a wordless acknowledgement, the surviving nukenin jumped into the air and landed in front of Gaara, Tobi, Deidara, and Kisame, effectively cutting them off from Naruto.

"Your battle is with us, mooners," one obnoxious looking nukenin yelled. Some looked in disbelief at the man, while others clapped their hands to their faces in shame.

"We're Dawn, not Red Moon," Kisame growled, cutting the offending nukenin in half. His beady little eyes moved left and right over the group of remaining nukenin. "So... who's up for a kill fest?"

Smirking at their confused expressions, he jumped into the air, Samehada in one hand, the other performing one-handed seals.

"Prepare to pay for choosing to fight with us!" he roared all the while. Landing, he yelled "**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!**"

A dragon of water burst forth from around Kisame, taking form from his chakra, and streaked like a bullet towards the group of nukenin.

Tobi flashed through his own hand seals, stopping on the seal of the Tiger. "**Katon: Tsuinkaryuu Endan no Jutsu!**"

The twin dragons of fire burst forth from where his mouth would've been had his mask been off, and roared in a helix formation towards Kisame's water dragon. The two jutsus combined, the two dragons of fire spiraling around the dragon of water in a helix.

Tobi and Kisame yelled the name of the jutsu at the same time.

"**Konbi Jutsu: Sanjuuyouso no Jutsu!**"

The nukenin's eyes widened, and they scrambled to take cover. The triple dragon combination of fire and water killed five nukenin that were in its path because of their delayed reaction, and then blew up in mid flight. In the midst of the explosion, the three different dragons split outward in a triangle shape, streaking to yet more nukenin. The three separated elements killed three more nukenin, before exploding in brilliant flashes of red and white. The triple explosions shook the room, and when the smoke cleared, the damage revealed another two dead nukenin and four severely injured.

Two nukenin, convinced of their plight at the amazing display of the devastating attack, turned to run, but found them immobilized by sand, which slowly crept its way up their legs.

When they were completely captured, a menacing voice whispered out, "**Sabaku Souso.**"

The two nukenin exploded in a shower of blood and guts, the remains falling like rain onto the surviving nukenin, further paralyzing them with fear.

Viewing the destruction that Kisame and Tobi had wreaked upon the area, Gaara frowned. '_Any _experienced_ ninja would have set up an elemental defense to disperse the attack, whether or not it would have held. The nukenin here ran freely and dodged as if..._' Gaara's eyes widened. '_Then... they're just more _cannon fodder!"

Before he could let out a warning, Iwa Bunshins emerged quickly from the floor, taking hold on the Akatsuki shinobi's ankles, Gaara excluded, because his sand shield had blocked the path of the stone arms.

"Heh, even the mighty Akatsuki falls for such petty tricks like the **Iwa Bunshin no Jutsu**."

The real nukenin burst from the floor. In all, there were sixteen, and they did not seem like the pushover type. The one who had spoken, a normal man with dark red hair, shot forward, slashing horizontally at Kisame using a katana.

"GWAH!" Kisame roared, swinging his arm with massive strength, pulling along the Iwa Bunshin as well and using it as a shield. **Clang.** Metal hit stone, and the ninja jumped back, narrowly avoiding another flying Iwa Bunshin that swung from Kisame's outstretched leg.

"Impressive... I see now why Akatsuki was so feared, and still is," he murmured.

He turned to the fifteen others who stood silently behind him, waiting for him to speak. "Kill the others. Don't let them- DUCK!"

Confused, they did not understand what he was trying to say until two of their heads exploded. The presumed nukenin captain whirled around to see a smirking Deidara, with piles of rubble surrounding him - the remains of the Iwa Bunshin that had captured him.

"You're going to have to do better than that, yeah," Deidara commented, before throwing more homing bird bombs past the nukenin. Out of the corner of his eye, the captain could see the birds circling around and turning back towards the group.

"These guys are S-Class shinobi," he warned, taking out the bird bombs with a few well-placed shuriken throws. "At any given chance, go for a killing blow. Break!"

Four groups of three nukenin split off to fight the four remaining Akatsuki shinobi. The nukenin captain went through several hand seals, while his subordinates engaged the cloaked menaces.

"**Doton: Iwanadare no Jutsu!**" Large pieces of the stone floor lifted up, and two of the several stones threw themselves at Gaara and Deidara.

Not caught unawares, Deidara jumped, twisting in mid-air while letting lose bird bombs at the incoming boulder, at the same time throwing clay shuriken at the three nukenin that had him occupied.

Indeed, the clay hit their target, exploding in a brilliant flash, but the boulder kept on coming, undeterred by the explosives. Of course, this surprised the blonde, as he'd never before met rocks that didn't blow up when he wanted them to. Sand rushed around Deidara and rose, protecting him from the boulder by stopping it cold. Deidara turned to Gaara, who had already stopped the boulder that had been sent after him.

Meanwhile, the nukenin captain watched the proceedings in interest.

'_Those boulders were sharpened and imbued with chakra. No normal defense can stop them, yet mere sand halted their advance completely..._'

Smirking, he directed another boulder at Kisame, prepared to fire. '_This will prove to be the greatest challenge of my career... no... My _life.'

Flinging the large object, it flew at high speeds towards Kisame. The blue-skinned man, adept as he was in the arts of fighting, had already figured out the trick behind the boulders' durability.

Grabbing Samehada by the handle, he swung vertically starting from the bottom, cutting the boulder in half effortlessly.

"Heh, my Samehada feeds on chakra, whether it's at a short or melee distance, it doesn't matter. Without chakra, your jutsu is throwing mere rocks at me instead of lethal weapons!" Kisame boasted.

Of course, the nukenin captain nodded in understanding. After all, he wasn't quite as dull as any of the other nukenin. He knew what predicament he was in now.

'_One has a near impenetrable automatic defense... Another has a chakra-feeding blade... To top it all off, I can see that the blonde hasn't used any of the larger explosives... This does not bode well for me... not at all..._'

* * *

Naruto glared down the nukenin commander, the two shinobi circling each other warily, looking for any opportunity to strike or retaliate. Several explosions sounded behind their position, sweeping the area with smoke. Squinting their eyes, they continued to circle each other, thinking up and rejecting strategies that they could use. Then, another set of explosions shook the room, forcing more smoke into the arena. This time, the commander's eyes shifted momentarily to see what had happened. Taking the opportunity, Naruto flickered forward at high speed, repositioning his chakra fang and swiping horizontally at the man's head. His eyes widened considerably, when a large chunk of stone blocked his attack. 

'_What the...?_'

Another piece of stone exploded from the ground underneath him, slamming into his chest and sending him hurtling into the air. The commander flashed through hand seals. Realizing his position, Naruto did the same, intent on covering his fall.

"**Kuro Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!**"

"**Doton: Iwa Ame no Jutsu!**"

Black flames spurted from Naruto's mouth like a hose, the giant fireball hurtling towards whatever jutsu that the leader had performed. Said technique had caused a steady stream of chakra-enhanced stones to fly up at the incoming fireball. The two elements battled for dominance, the flames continually melting the rocks while more took their melted companions' places. In the end, the nukenin decided not to waste any more chakra in the stalemate and canceled his technique. While all this transpired, Naruto was on his return path to solid ground. As the flames grew closer, the commander pumped as much chakra as he could into his feet in a short amount of time, and jumped aside with all the strength that he could muster.

A resounding explosion threw him even further, extreme heat breathing down his neck and black flames whipping around the impact area wildly. The nukenin groaned slightly, regaining his wits. Standing up, he looked back to the point of impact, to find that the stone floor had slogged down into a large crater with a depth of about ten feet.

'_I've never seen black flames, or damage at that scale of what's supposed to be a C-Rank technique to boot,_' he thought hazily.

Staggering to the edge of the crater, he surveyed the damage, estimating that it was about twenty-five feet in diameter.

'_It's no wonder that one of my stronger jutsu was cancelled out like that..._'

The smoke cleared, revealing a worse for wear Naruto, who was panting heavily from the chakra use.

"That was quite a jutsu that you pulled off there, Blondie," the nukenin called out. "You're quite the challenge, and I can appreciate strength when I see it."

Naruto took in several deep breaths of air, attempting to straighten up, even with severe chakra exhaustion striving to claim his consciousness.

'_Heh... black elemental jutsu take three times more chakra than the original technique... but that's a small price to pay for having a technique of four times the normal strength..._'

Settling into the fighting stance he had used against Rock Lee during the Chuunin Exams, a feeling of nostalgia swept over him.

'_It feels like it's been so long... so long since the time where life wasn't so difficult..._'

Surging forward like a bullet, his intent to knock his opponent out, Naruto thrust with his fingers, each laden with deadly power. The brunette ducked under one thrust, and lashed out with a foot to keep the blonde at a distance. Slowed down from exhaustion, Naruto took the kick in the knees, halting his advance. Another kick sent him skidding across the floor like a rag doll.

"Even I, an A-Class nukenin, can defeat even the most powerful of ninja when they're exhausted, such as you are."

Naruto shot at the nukenin once again, intent on trying once more. Hopping into the air, he spun like a ball and attempted to 'squish' his opponent. That would've worked, had his opponent been slightly slower. The nukenin threw himself to the side, and then pushed off hard, intent on taking the offensive. Taking a punch to the gut and a jab to the neck, Naruto faltered, and the nukenin took his chance. Whirling out a kunai from his holsters, he aimed for the heart. That would've worked as well, had Naruto been any other ninja. Charging his teeth with chakra, his head bobbed forward, biting onto the metal of the kunai.

'_Damn!_' the nukenin thought.

Performing a roundhouse kick, Naruto tried to stun the nukenin, but that failed. Catching the leg, the commander twisted, picked up the leg, which lead to the picking up of the entire body, and slammed the blonde to the earthen floor.

'_Shit... I'm utterly exhausted... My ninjutsu and genjutsu don't have the chakra reserves to be performed, nor do I currently have the speed to use taijutsu..._'

A dull realization hit him. '_Of course! I'm such a shit-head. I can use _that!'

"**Yeah, you're a huge shit-head.**"

"_Shut the hell up, Kyuubi._" Getting up slowly to his feet, Naruto stood his ground shakily.

"Why don't you accept your fate?" the nukenin asked solemnly, while going through hand seals. "Why do you keep fighting?"

Naruto grinned devilishly, his eyes full of determination. "Because... it is not my fate to lose... I shall be... victorious!" He flew through familiar, but unused hand seals.

_Dragon, Tiger, Horse, Dragon, Snake, Dragon, Ox, Dragon... _"**Yami Tsuki Henshin!**"

Just like in the Chuunin Exam preliminaries, Naruto transformed into a midnight-black skinned, armored monstrosity. The nukenin gazed in silent awe at the terrible sight of the seven-foot demon. Eight, three-foot long spikes emerged from the enormous backside, in two rows going down, four on each side and spaced evenly. His neck elongated, and his head gained the appearance of a demon-dragon fusion.

Though the head resembled that of a dragon, the fangs were unusually long, six-inches, and the eyes contained demonic, blood red pupils. The whites of the demon's eyes were black, dark demonic black. In comparison to the previous version, this form was less muscular and more on the bony side, but sacrificed strength for demonic offense. The claws, previously five-inches, had a length of six-and-a-half-inches, and if one looked close enough, had tiny barbs that would tear flesh and muscle from bone. The tail, though not much different than the last, was thinner, but that was made up for the increase in the amount of spines that dotted the length of the appendage.

One major change was the addition of wings. The fleshy appendages extended outwards from the shoulders, each wing measuring about five-feet in length, with a leathery quality of dragons, yet the bony and unnatural look of demons. This explained why his toe claws were larger and more curved; this was to provide brakes that would allow the half-demon 'avatar' to come to a complete stop more quickly and launch another offensive just as swiftly, making this form twice as deadly.

Naruto the half-demon held out both of his bony, clawed, arms to be perpendicular to his hunched body. The curved outline of two, large, nine-foot-long crescent-moon scythes appeared, before solidifying. The appearance of the weapons was terrifying. The cutting edge was spiked, whose purpose was similar to the half-demon's claws - to rip and tear the enemy apart. Red, demonic runes ran across the pure black blade of the scythe, making it glow eerily.

"**Ready or not, here I _come_!**"

Grasping the handle of both scythes, one in each clawed hand; the half-demon gave one toothy grin to the nukenin before disappearing and reappearing behind said ninja.

'_What the f-_' His thoughts were interrupted as the butt of the scythe slammed into him, sending him hurtling into a wall.

Naruto set both scythes in an x-like position, and then slashed horizontally in front of him, each scythe moving one different direction. The shockwave emitted from the attack surged toward the nukenin at the speed of sound, slicing up huge pieces from the floor and wall in its path towards its target.

**Zeeehyooong! **(Yes, I know, crappy sound effect.)

The nukenin had just barely replaced himself with a stone before Naruto was on him again. Disregarding the destruction of the previous wall, the demonic offense continued. Slapping both of the scythes' butts together, the two weapons merged into a single weapon, one in which each end had a scythe, one pointing left, and the other pointing right.

Spinning the newly combined weapon in front of himself, Naruto advanced slowly towards the nukenin. The commander paled considerably, when he tried to throw kunai at the spinning instrument of death, only to have the weapons become cut into pieces so thin he could swear that they were merely threads of yarn. He went quickly through hand seals.

"**Doton: Iwa Kuuchuufuyuu no Jutsu!**" Large pieces of hardened earth and rock rose from the floor, hovering around Naruto, who watched in interest.

'_Hmm… what's he doing?_'

"**Doton: Iwahakai no Jutsu!**" The rocks exploded into thousands of shards of rock, further intriguing the half-demon.

'_Heh… looks interesting… I wonder if it's destructive…_'

"**Doton: Iwa Ame!**" the commander finished. The thousands of rock shards tilted, until each and every single one was pointed at Naruto.

The chakra covering them glistening in the light, there was a three second reprieve before they all shot towards the half-demon. Naruto grinned just as the attack impacted. Dust blew from the ground, and flew every which way, the dust cloud enlarging and filling up parts of the massive stone room.

The nukenin held his breath in anticipation – watching to see if his attack had killed, wounded at the least, his opponent. But no, his hopes were crushed when the dust that was thrown into the air blew clear. Naruto stood where he had been previously, and had not moved an inch. There was not a single scratch on the half-demon, which would've been impossible. Of course, he didn't know about the extreme, demonic healing-factor. Indeed, Naruto _had_ taken damage, albeit they were merely cuts and gashes, but they were all healed as quickly as the damage had been taken.

Decidedly bored, Naruto shoved his right-handed scythe into the ground, and flickered forward, one clawed hand ablaze with black and blue chakra, the other hand wielding the second scythe, which was now glowing an eerie red.

"**Eat _this_!**" he roared, striking with the claws.

The nukenin jumped back as fast as he was able to, but took a large gash to his left shoulder nevertheless.

'_Not good… if I get hit head-on by that attack of his, I'll certainly… perish._'

He flickered next to Naruto, kicking the leg with as much strength and chakra-enhanced power as he could muster. The half-demon merely took it in stride and lashed out with the scythe. The nukenin ducked, but he could see after-images appearing and following the scythe's trail.

'_Strange… why does it do that?_'

Naruto grinned in a feral manner, his sharp fangs jutting out.

"**You'd like to know what these scythes do, don't you? Too bad!**"

He crouched, and then released another shockwave at the brunette, who jumped over it this time. That proved to be a mistake, as Naruto intercepted him in midair.

'_Che, he's pretty agile…_' Naruto thought grumpily. '_It's a good thing that my scythes are doing their job._'

He grinned to himself, as he had at the time Kyuubi had told him the scythes' purpose. To put it simply, it threw off the opponent. When twirling the scythes at high speeds, the after-images would become undistinguishable from the real things, and then this miscalculation would lead to death.

In this case, he wasn't aiming to do that, though. He was throwing off his opponent by making him wonder what the scythes were doing, of which it was essentially doing nothing at this point. He _loved_ screwing with his opponents.

The nukenin flipped forward, landing on the wide, bony shoulders of the half-demon, and flipped out a pair of explosive kunais. Leaping from the shoulders to avoid being whacked off by a swipe, he turned around in midair and threw both at the head.

**BOOM! **

Roaring in anger, Naruto rushed forward at a sprint.

'_God dammit! That _hurt!'

The head was already in the process of healing, and the excessive head wounds and burn and scorch marks faded rapidly.

'_This is… impossible!_' the nukenin commander thought, in heavy annoyance. '_Both his stamina and chakra improved when he transformed, and he heals like a bastard! Add to the fact that he looks like he came from hell…_'

"**This is boring. Time to end it,**" Naruto uttered, his voice a deep growl.

'_This will be an _awesome_ finisher, I'm sure._'

He opened his toothy maw, chakra gathering into a large sphere of energy just outside of his mouth. The chakra continued gathering, and then began shrinking. The final result was a ball of high-density chakra, which consequently looked quite dangerous.

Swallowing the super-dense ball of chakra, he inflated his body quickly like a balloon, and opened his mouth to blow out the energy.

**SheekaBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! **

The gigantic energy blast tore it's way to the nukenin at speeds matching the speed of sound. (If you're confused, read the Naruto: Shippuuden chapters, where he goes into four-tailed Kyuubi Naruto mode.)

The brunette panicked, and did the only thing that came to mind - replace himself with a piece of a rock that was stuck to the ceiling.

* * *

Meanwhile… Gaara had finished off his final opponent, courtesy of Shukaku, when he heard a strange noise. Turning, he saw a blast of energy approaching at _very_ high speed. Time seemed to slow down, as the dull realization of impending hit the redhead. 

'_Well, _shit.'

Time still seemingly slow, he yelled out something incoherent, before doing what he didn't do best – run from an attack.

He and the other Akatsuki members jumped, and he fashioned platforms using sand from the earth. The four shinobi hovered in the air, watching the energy shoot past, obliterating everything in its path. The blast itself was about one hundred meters in diameter at it's current state – The blast grew larger as it traveled farther, and it had traveled a distance of five hundred meters in two seconds – and dropped the jaws of all ninja that weren't killed.

The attack itself had hit the back lines of the nukenin forces, effectively wiping out and obliterating sixty percent of the ninjas. Their bodies did not exist, as they were vaporized on impact.

"…" Kisame mouthed out.

"…" Deidara stared on.

"…" Gaara wanted to know what that move was, so he could slaught- err, defeat more people.

"… I think Naruto-san went a _little_ overboard with that," Tobi commented quietly.

"You can say _that_ again," the nukenin captain muttered from his position on the ceiling. He had abandoned all pretenses and saved himself by sticking to the roof, at the cost of all of his subordinates' lives.

"I think Naruto-san went a –oomph!"

Kisame growled, his fist ready to hit the idiotic fool if he dared say it again. "It was a figure of speech, you _moron_!"

Out of the dust caused by the exhalation of extreme, destructive energy, Naruto emerged, no longer in his demonic form. Off in the distance, if he squinted his eyes and concentrated really hard, he could see the widespread chaos that he had caused. He glanced sideways at the nukenin commander that was still on the ceiling.

'_I never did find out how he manipulated the earth without hand seals…_'

"Well… I guess I'd better leave before Kasumi does something to me for scaring her…"

With that, Naruto left the scene with a simple **Shunshin no Jutsu**, the other Akatsuki members following suit moments later.

"God damn you, you _bastards_!" Kasumi half-screamed into the air after watching them disappear. "How _dare_ you leave me like that, and force _me _to 'clean up'??"

* * *

Gosh, I had to invent like, so many new jutsus. I'm not even sure if they're written correctly… If you can find mistakes, please tell me, so I can make it more accurate. Anyways, 21 pages, not bad. I _finally_ finished the damned chapter, and I apologize for taking so long. 

**Enemy Ranking**

Nukenin (Kiri) – C-B-Ranks – The ranks of nukenin groups and armies are filled with C and B-ranked ninjas, who are the most ideal for combat. Against stronger foes though, the most useful task for them is to become cannon fodder.

Nukenin (Iwa) – B-A-Ranks – The missing ninjas from Iwagakure are a hell of a lot better than the cannon fodder from Kiri. These dudes take orders and can work together as a team, though that's rare amongst random pairings.

Nukenin Captain (Iwa) – A-Rank – Your average, everyday 'powerful' nukenin is at this rank, and you'll usually never see a nukenin at a higher rank. The captain works under the commander, and acts as a type of overlord, relaying commands and fighting with their troops.

Nukenin Commander (Iwa) – A-Rank (Elite) – The commander is still an A-Rank ninja, but is still many times stronger than the captain, and is on the verge of reaching S-Rank status. Commanders do what their names suggest – they command. Though they rarely fight, when they do, they are a force to be reckoned with.

**Jutsu List**

**Fuuton: Daitoppa (Wind Element: Great Breakthrough) C-Rank – The jutsu sends out a powerful explosion of wind, easily destroying anything in its path. This jutsu can be modified in a variety of ways, such as breaking it up into smaller pieces and sending enflamed wind at the enemy. **

**Katon: Tsuinkaryuu Endan no Jutsu (Fire Element: Twin Fire Dragon Blast Technique) A-Rank - The same as the original Karyuu Endan no Jutsu, except that there are two dragons that attack the opponent. **

**Konbi Jutsu: Sanjuuyouso no Jutsu (Combination Technique: Triple Element Technique) S-Rank - This combined attack only works for certain projectile techniques, and requires the caster(s) to perform extra hand seals to add the extra effects. Different hand seals cause different effects, and as such, the technique is extremely versatile, damaging, deadly, and most of all, extremely awesome. **

**Iwa Bunshin no Jutsu (Rock Clone Technique) - D-Rank - A spin off of the Bunshin no Jutsu, the technique gathers minerals from the ground and forms a rock clone out of it. Unlike normal Bunshins, Iwa Bunshins are solid. Unlike Kage Bunshin, Iwa Bunshins don't dissipate in a single hit, but are much slower as a consequence. Their attacks are all taijutsu, and can pack quite a punch.**

**Doton: Iwanadare no Jutsu (Earth Element: Rock Avalanche Technique) - A-Rank - The user lifts large-sized pieces of rock from the floor, or if there are none, gathers minerals to form rocks or hardens and compacts the existing earth, and sends them flying at high speed towards the enemy. Being enhanced and sharpened with chakra, these rocks cannot be destroyed with conventional methods such as blades, or even explosives. Chakra enhanced weapons and jutsu can all counter this technique.**

**Kuro Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Dark Fire Element: Grand Fireball Technique) - A-Rank - A modification of the normal Goukakyuu no Jutsu, the user adds a single demon seal to the beginning of the set, causing the jutsu to become demonic in nature. Dark elemental attacks are four times as strong as their non-dark counterparts, but also require three times the chakra a user would use to perform the original technique. All ninja can use this, but very few know the actual demon seals to perform the technique.**

**Doton: Iwa Ame no Jutsu (Earth Element: Rock Rain Technique) - A-Rank - Related to the Iwanadare no Jutsu in nature, the user lifts medium-sized pieces of rock from the floor, or if there are none, gathers minerals to form rocks, and sends them flying at high speed towards the enemy. Being chakra enhanced, these rocks cannot be destroyed with conventional methods such as blades. Explosives, chakra enhanced weapons, and jutsu can all counter this technique.**

**Doton: Iwa Kuuchuufuyuu no Jutsu (Earth Element: Rock Levitation Technique) - C-Rank - A basic part of the Iwanadare no Jutsu and the Iwa Ame no Jutsu, the Iwa Kuuchuufuyuu no Jutsu is the part of these techniques that lifts the rocks from the floor and imbues them with chakra. In each of the two jutsu, the hand seals already contain the seals for this technique, but it can also be performed alone. The only advantage of not combining it with another jutsu is to be able to position the rocks in advance in preparation for the next technique.**

**Doton: Iwahakai no Jutsu (Destruction of Rocks Technique) - C-Rank - A stepping stone in preparation for an offensive jutsu, the Iwahakai no Jutsu shatters rocks into many small pieces, each still sharpened with chakra.**


	11. Bloodline

**Code: Disclaimer: Go Go Power Range... Err...**

**Ben: ... Is that all you have to say after all these months!?**

**Code: (laughs nervously) Forget that I said that. Seriously, forget it.**

**Ben: Anyways, welcome to the latest chapter of... BLACK LIGHTNING!**

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 10: Bloodline

xxxx

"_The only rock I know stays steady, the only institution I know that works, is family." Lee Iacocca_

xxxx

Naruto left Kiri immediately, knowing full well the consequences of staying in the village. Kasumi had been furious when he'd left unexpectedly, and she'd be furious if she found him still within the country's borders. Therefore, the most logical choice of action was to flee for his life, to Konoha. With Akane and Hikaru in tow, he traveled during the day. Deidara, Gaara, and Tobi traveled with the HACS to Akatsukigakure no Sato, while Kisame left to attend to Itachi. The blond was still tired from the previous battle, and so the three had to go by foot. It wasn't bad, they quite enjoyed the scenery, but it would've been preferred to arrive earlier, because he had a deadline to keep.

It was a very important deadline, mind you. It involved himself, a pervert, and a jutsu, but that's something for a later time...

Within the end of the first day, they had entered into the boundaries of Hi no Kuni. Within the afternoon of the second day, they had reached the gates of Konoha. It wasn't hard when you had three ninja of Rank A and higher who could apply chakra to improve their travel speed. Well, it _was _a bit harder when one of them was suffering from minor chakra exhaustion.

The three stood in front of the massive gates, wondering why they were closed so late during the day. Normally there should have been a guard or two at the very least, but alas, there were none to be found. Unless by some miraculous chance that someone came by within the next five minutes and opened the gates, they'd have to get in the old-fashioned way... Go through the wall. So, for the next few minutes they waited in silence. By a stroke of luck, Sandaime happened to be taking a stroll on the walls, overlooking the defenses.

The Hokage looked down in surprise, recognizing Naruto's blond hair anywhere.

'_Did he come unannounced? Isn't he supposed to be in Kiri to prepare for a treaty signing?_' were the thoughts that traveled through the aging ninja's mind. Certainly, the appearance of several shinobi who should be in another country would be surprising.

Naruto, sensing the man's presence, looked up to meet his counterpart's gaze. Grinning, he waved with his left hand, at the same time pointing at the gate with his right. This gesture was not lost on Sandaime. He performed several hand seals, resulting in the slow opening of the gates. This was an emergency measure when one could not access the mechanism that usually opened and closed the gates, and Sandaime had to admit, sometimes it came in handy.

Soon enough, the two Kage were walking through the streets, alone. There were no civilians, no shinobi, no trace of anyone. Hikaru and Akane were not present because Naruto had fervently insisted that the two should check the apartment for hidden booby traps. A wonderful excuse to get rid of annoying bodyguards who didn't give him a moment's peace... right? Right?

"So, what brings you to Konoha?" Sandaime asked casually. "You're supposed to be in Kiri right now, Naruto."

"Well," the blond said, glancing around nervously in remembrance, "I kind of pissed off the Mizukage while I was there, so I thought I should make a break for it while things were still hectic."

"Wasn't there a nukenin uprising recently?" the Hokage replied after sifting through recent information that had found its way onto his desk. "I heard that there was a massive buildup of nukenin. Did you by any chance take part in it?"

"Sure did. Me and the HACS assisted Kiri... Oh that reminds me, I need to be there in two days to sign the finished treaty."

"The only way they would let the Hikage leave the city would be if..."

"If they never knew that I was the Hikage," Naruto finished gleefully, a grin appearing on his face. "I've always been a prankster at heart, even during my training with Akatsuki. My favorite target was Kisame, boy, those were the times." He smiled reminiscently, at the times when Sasori had chased Kisame around the hideout with the Kazekage puppet, the times where Itachi had hoarded all of the Pocky in a secret compartment. The good times when Yoshi had always played chess with him, and always won. The happy days were gone, and now it was time to get serious.

Naruto set his face into a grim expression. As soon as possible, he'd make Iwa and the Tsuchikage pay for what they did. They'd pay for killing his comrades, friends, and adopted family. With the remainder of Akatsuki and the shinobi of Akatsukigakure, he'd annihilate Iwagakure no Sato and leave not even a fistful of remains to remember it by. Pretty soon, his village would be allied with both Konohagakure and Kirigakure, two of the five main powers. Add to the fact that Konoha was now allied to Sunagakure, their four-way alliance would descend upon the rats like an avalanche upon a deer.

"I'm looking for Jiraiya," he informed Sandaime. "That's currently the only reason I'm here at the moment. I'm here to learn... a jutsu, familial jutsu to be specific."

The old Hokage snapped his fingers, an imaginary light bulb going on above his head.

"Ah yes, Jiraiya arrived just three days ago with information on the status of Iwagakure. It seems that they are elated by their so called 'victory' over Akatsuki, and are boasting of their strength to all shinobi nations. I would suspect that he's near one of the various hot springs that are dotted throughout Konoha. Find him, I'm sure he'll be more than enthusiastic to pass on your father's techniques."

With a salute, the two parted ways. One to his office to sign more paperwork, the other to the nearest possible hot spring, in pursuit of the most notorious pervert to grace the ranks of shinobi. As a ninja, he moved fluidly from one hot spring to another, wasting little to no time in checking the area over. Of course, he took special care not to look _into_ the hot spring, otherwise he'd be just as bad as Jiraiya.

Pretty soon, he had found the perverted Sennin's telltale white hair perched on top of a tree. The tree, of course, overlooked the hot spring, the fourth that Naruto had been to. He quickly and silently created a Kage Bunshin, sending it to perform the infamous _Konohagakure Hiden: Taijutsu no Ougi: Sennen Goroshi_. Sadly, kunai hit the Bunshin in the back, dispelling it before it could accomplish its mission. The Jiraiya in the trees disappeared with a pop, leaving only smoke clouds behind. He was getting smarter...

"I try and learn from my mistakes, gaki," the Sennin drawled while leaning against the wooden wall of the hot spring that he had been peeking inside of earlier.

"If so, then shouldn't you stop peeping into the hot spring?" the blond countered swiftly. For someone like himself, who had been raised to never commit perverted acts, Jiraiya was the epitome of evil.

"Pft, it's a blessing, not a mistake," the white-haired man retorted in reply to the accusation, glaring at the thirteen-year-old for good measure. "The only thing I've learned from the beatings are to use Kage Bunshin to peep safely."

That was when a wash-bucket hit him on the head. The girls knew that they were there, meaning that their time was up. The two took running leaps into the tree line, moving at a brisk pace. Jiraiya wrote in his notebook, muttering to himself, while Naruto lost himself to his memories again. Memories of playing 'All or Nothing' with Kakuzu, pranking Kisame, and painting Sasori's puppets and blaming it on the previous shark-faced man. Those were times he'd miss, but that was in the past, and this was now.

"You're here to learn _it_," Jiraiya stated obviously, the two Kage level shinobi landing in a clearing just outside of Konoha. "If you have, you've come at the right time."

"Huh, why _else_ would I be here?"

Half smirking, half smiling, Jiraiya whipped out a medium-sized scroll from a smaller containment scroll. He tossed it to Naruto, the two-foot-long scroll flying lazily through the air and into the blond's outstretched hand.

"Inside of that scroll... are all of the requirements that you need to fulfill in order to begin the Hiraishin training," the Sennin informed Naruto. "You _must_ meet all of the requirements to prevent the risk of self injury or unpreparedness."

"One-hundred-fifty kilogram weights on each limb, an unusually high chakra capacity, patience, determination, and lots of paper, ink, and brushes." Naruto looked up after reading from the scroll. "What the hell? Don't tell me this mediocre-"

Jiraiya whipped out another scroll and tossed it to Naruto, who caught it just as easily as he did with the first. Opening it, the blond read through it quickly. He could see why the previous scroll had asked for what it did. Inside were detailed explanations on why the Hiraishin kunai were used, how it was more useful than conventional kunai, what action the kunai performed, and what the fuuin accomplished. At the end of the scroll, said fuuin was super-imposed in black ink, and boy was it complex.

Proficient with Fuuin Jutsu, Naruto could see that the fuuin was a _Kuchiyose Fuuin_. Its purpose was to 'teleport' the user to the location of the kunai at the speed of light. Essentially, the _Kuchiyose Fuuin_, or jutsu-shiki, would need to have been on the kunai for it to work, thus the ever hardworking Yondaime had made super-miniature fuuin to be placed around the handle. To draw such a small fuuin would require the patience, determination, and supplies that the scroll had asked for earlier. Now that he read a little further though, the jutsu-shiki could basically be placed on anything, though kunai were preferred.

"Arashi made and developed his own kunai and fuuin," Jiraiya announced. "It took him many, _many_ years of development during his Chuunin and Jounin years to perfect it, finally putting it to use in the Iwa-Konoha War and practically winning it single handedly using that technique."

Naruto's eyes dropped down to look further at the scroll and read the reason why the specific Hiraishin kunai were used.

"Triple-tipped kunai have a greater probability of making contact with the object that it is thrown at, which is necessary in order to perform the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_. Any of the three ends can activate the _Kuchiyose Fuuin_, which will then allow the user to teleport to that location. An added effect of the multiple tips is that it becomes increasingly difficult to catch the kunai without taking some form of damage to the hand. While conventional kunai may be stopped by grabbing lightly onto the handle or edge, the Hiraishin kunai's triple-tips prevent the opponent from taking hold of the edge safely. Should he/she attempt to catch it by the handle, the fuuin on the handle will explode, a precautionary measure against those who would seek to derive the secrets of the Hiraishin no Jutsu from said fuuin."

"Pretty complicated and well thought-out, huh?" the Sennin commented, leaning against a tree and smirking smugly. "Whilst I was the Konoha no Fuuin Shishou, Arashi was the tensai, a genius. Not even _I_ can decipher the secret to the Hiraishin's special fuuin. Adding to that, Arashi created the Shiki Fuujin, the ultimate Fuuin Jutsu that ultimately placed Kyuubi into you. Concerning _that_ jutsu, I wouldn't be able to figure it out even if I were given a hundred years."

"That good?" Naruto asked disbelievingly. "We'll leave that for another time, now let's continue. The edges of the three tips are lined with specially designed spines that can rip into and tear flesh like a hook. Because they are so minuscule and impossible to see even at a distance of half a foot, it is the perfect surprise when using it as a weapon rather than a jutsu activator. Now, to the process. When the kunai hits a solid object, it initiates the _Kuchiyose Fuuin_'s activity. When the user releases some of the previously stored chakra, that chakra will be used to activate the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_ and instantly teleport the user to the point of impact. At this point, the user is moving literally at light-speed, and for the few impossibly tiny measurements of time before he/she actually appears at the final location, the user can see everything around then in stopped motion. This is due to the light-speed movement of the user, and he/she can use this brief moment of insight to immediately take action upon teleportation, killing or disabling the opponent swiftly and moving to the next kunai's position just as swiftly."

"And that's how he earned the name "Konoha no Kiroi Senkou," commented the white-haired Sennin. "Basically, everything that any of his opponents could see was a yellow flash, the flash being his teleportation and the color specifically stemming from his hair, before they were killed."

"_Crazy_."

"No, _insane_."

Naruto scowled at Jiraiya's childish correction, and scowled again when he noticed that Jiraiya had stood up to his full height, intent on looming over the thirteen-year-old. The blond was very sensitive about his height, you see. It didn't matter what his reputation was or how powerful he had become, people saw a kid when they looked at him, not a fearsome Hikage. He wanted to be feared and respected, not treated like a child.

"Oh!" the Sennin exclaimed in shock. "I forgot to tell you something. There is a second form of the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_. The second form doesn't require the use of the kunai, but replaces that medium of teleportation with a lot of chakra, something that you have an abundant source of."

"Really?" Naruto replied dubiously. "Is it anywhere near as fast?"

"It'll never reach the same speed as the first form, but it has the advantage of not having to rely on the contact of the kunai. You see, if you missed with the kunai, the teleportation would be useless unless they moved in front of it again," he explained, using his large frame to gesture wildly. "The second form lets you move around _anywhere_ without the use of the kunai, so it's better in a one-on-one or against a large group of highly-skilled enemies."

"Wait... what? Wouldn't a larger group make an easier target for the Hiraishin kunai?" questioned Naruto confusedly. "Argh, this is so confusing."

"Put it this way. Skilled shinobi would know that the only way to counter the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_'s first form is to not get near any of the kunai in the first place. That means they'd opt offense for stealthy hit-and-run tactics. Now, using the second form, you can zip up to their face and wipe the floor with them without having to throw anything."

"How fast is it?"

"Arashi was able to go fast enough to create afterimages that trailed about three to five meters behind his constantly moving location. Technically, it's very close to the speed of sound, but nowhere near the speed of light. Oh, and it's _definitely_ faster than the demonic speed that you displayed during the Chuunin Exam preliminaries."

"I see," the blond muttered. He _did_ see. The _Hiraishin no Jutsu_ was unstoppable. If someone knew how to counter the first form, they wouldn't know how to counter the second form. If they knew how to counter the second, he could use the first. If they knew how to counter both, he could use a mixture of the two to keep the opponent always on the move and eventually get them against a kunai. "Yondaime really _was_ a tensai..."

"Heh, I was trained by Sarutobi-sensei, and he was trained by me. Now you're being indirectly taught by your father and me, and add to that your current strength, you'll be unstoppable by the time I'm finished with you," Jiraiya boasted confidently.

"Maybe..."

"Hm?"

"Demons. Dad, no matter how strong he was, he was still human. He couldn't match a demon's strength. There are still other jinchuuriki in the world, and that could be problematic if they become enemies," Naruto explained. "No one is truly immortal, not even Orochimaru."

"True," admitted the Sennin, rubbing his chin. "There's also the fact that you're still associated with Akatsuki, village or not, and they might hold a grudge."

Naruto and Jiraiya stood in silence, the only noise coming from the rustling of leaves. The cry of a falcon that was circling the sky caught both of their attentions, Jiraiya specifically holding out his arm. The brown falcon dropped down speedily, slowing in its descent and landing safely on the outstretched limb. The Sennin took the tiny piece of paper that was tied around the predatory bird's leg and read it to himself.

"Well gaki, it seems my time here's been cut short. Orochimaru is on the move and Sandaime just got wind of it. He needs me to oversee the spy network again."

"Uh, what about the-"

Jiraiya popped out two more scrolls from the container scroll, handing both to Naruto.

"The first one that I'm giving you will teach you the second form of the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_, though I suggest working on the second scroll first, the one with the blueprints of the special kunai. So, first things are first, which is to get rid of the most troublesome work early on. Finish the kunai and the fuuin, make about a dozen or two, and then work on the jutsu."

"Uh, how does the first stage work?"

"You throw the kunai, and it hits a solid object," Jiraiya sighed in exasperation. "It doesn't immediately teleport you. You need to first release some of the chakra that you earlier put in the fuuin. It's as simple as that. Throw, release, and slice and dice your opponent."

He turned around to leave, but stopped.

"Oh, and I suggest to either learn to forge the kunai yourself or find someone very, very, _very_ loyal to do it for you. I can't believe how many people out there are still looking for the blueprints for the kunai. Your father was never idiotic enough to lose any of his kunai – He always carried a certain amount and counted how many he had once his opponents were dead. Very thorough he was."

'_Ugh, so troublesome,_' the blond thought dismally, using Shikamaru's favorite catch phrase.

"Ah, a few more things. Make a _Rasengan_."

Naruto looked at the white-haired man strangely, but did as he was told. The swirling ball of blue chakra appeared quickly in Naruto's right hand, a testament to how much he'd been practicing.

"Good, good, you can make one in one-and-a-half seconds. Not excellent, per say, but it's better than I expected from you."

The blond scowled at the subtle insult, choosing to save revenge for another day. For now, he was occupied with treaty signing, alliance making, and jutsu learning. He had no time to make Jiraiya's life miserable, at least not now anyways.

"Oh, and take this."

The Sennin handed Naruto a box.

"Huh?" Naruto said in confusion. He opened it to find three battle-worn Hiraishin kunai.

"Final thing before I leave," the Sennin told Naruto. "I suggest that you go see Kakashi before you leave Konoha, he'll prove really useful concerning the Rasengan.

"Huh?" the blond repeated.

"Sayonara, gaki!" Jiraiya yelled, disappearing in a cloud of smoke, the aftereffects of a Shunshin no Jutsu.

The words 'Nature Manipulation' were left hanging in the air, mere whispers by the time the smoke dissipated. Manipulation, he'd heard of it before. It was what allowed ninja to turn their chakra into fire in order to perform the _Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu_. Whilst manipulation let a shinobi turn their chakra into an element of nature, an affinity was the proficiency of that element. If one had an affinity for Wind, he or she would be infinitely better when performing Fuuton jutsu than any other jutsu.

Now came the mystery.

What in the seven layers of hell did nature manipulation have to do with Rasengan and Hatake Kakashi?

xxxx

"_Family is a haven in a heartless world." Christopher Lasch_

xxxx

Kakashi lounged around as he always did at Training Ground Three. He read from his precious orange book, the infamously perverted book written by Jiraiya of the Sannin. How he survived as such a deprived man, nobody knew. Mitarashi Anko had once asked why he never bothered to choose a girl from his fan-girls instead of reading that godforsaken book. He hadn't answered, but merely showed her a page of his book. She passed out instantly.

Currently, his three charges were training. More specifically, Sakura was watching while Sasuke and the unnamed boy sparred. The new Genin wasn't anyone special. He was an average brunette. He would grow to be average, probably at a Chuunin or Jounin level, and then stay there and never accomplish anything truly important. Naruto didn't really like average people, they were too bland for his taste.

"Hey Kakashi!" the blond called out, landing on the center stump of three which were in the middle of the clearing. "I need to have a quick conversation with you."

"Oh?"

The nonchalant reply brought another scowl to Naruto's face. Oh, how he hated that indifference, and yet it made him so cool.

"I was told that you could be of some use to my training."

"Training?" Sakura asked. "Why do you need to train? You're the Hikage!"

"Indeed, Hikage-sama," drawled Kakashi. "What exactly do you need assistance with?"

Kakashi walked up to the blond, who leaned forward to whisper into the silver-haired Jounin's ear.

"Jiraiya told me that you could help me. Mentioned 'nature manipulation' before he left though. Oh, and just call me Naruto. The title makes me feel old, and I'm only thirteen-and-a-half."

"Heh, alright," Kakashi conceded. "I get the same thing. People think I'm old but I'm only twenty-five years old."

Naruto squinted his eyes, staring at the Jounin.

"You're kidding me. You're that young?"

Kakashi sweatdropped, at the same time scratching the back of his head with his left hand. His right hand, of course, was holding onto Icha-Icha Paradise. He couldn't possibly look _that_ old, could he? I mean, if he flashed his face to any girl, they'd fall into a dead faint or into obsession. Old people couldn't be handsome... right? How could _anyone_ stereotype him into being old just by the color of his hair? It just wasn't fair...

Shaking his head clear of such thoughts, he began thinking thoughtfully of what the blond had just mentioned. If he wasn't mistaken, Jiraiya had told him to teach Naruto nature manipulation. Normally, nature manipulation is already in a jutsu in the form of hand seals, thus, anyone who had the perseverance to master the jutsu could perform basic nature manipulation. But this was Jiraiya that they were talking about. One never talked about 'basics' when referring to one of the Sannin. That would mean that the Sennin wanted him to teach Naruto advanced nature manipulation, the adding of an element of nature to an element-less jutsu or one's own creation. Advanced nature manipulation was required when inventing elemental jutsu, because using nature manipulation in the form of seals was one thing, but applying that same element to a jutsu was another.

For one thing, a jutsu initially started out with no hand seals whatsoever. By adding hand seals, the creator increased the complexity of the jutsu, whether it is in shape and form or purpose and function. They have to add the nature of the jutsu as well, but that can't be done when they don't know how the element truly works, thus they have to learn the advanced mechanics of nature manipulation. Essentially, a successful shinobi didn't need to know it, but the smart shinobi would.

Kakashi closed his book abruptly, snapping it shut and placing it in his equipment pouch. His eyes were slightly narrowed, but Naruto couldn't decipher any emotions or motives behind those eyes.

'_Nature manipulation?_' Sasuke thought to himself. He smirked. '_It took me an entire month to get down the basics and master it, something you probably don't have._'

Indeed. In a single month, he had learned and nearly mastered _Chidori_, Kakashi's sole original move and one he had created during the Iwa-Konoha War. Mastery, something very few could achieve in a month. Sure, someone could master a jutsu in a week or two, but that would be just the basics of basic nature manipulation, learning to use the element. Mastering it meant that you could basically use any jutsu associated with that element, only practicing the use of certain amounts of chakra required for the jutsu. As it was, Kakashi hadn't bothered teaching Sasuke any other Raiton jutsu...

"Naruto, do you... know the _Rasengan_?"

The blond simply nodded an affirmative, wondering why Kakashi even bothered to ask.

"Form one. Right now."

"...Why?"

Kakashi sighed heavily, raising his left hand to run through his hair and release some annoyance. Seriously, why did this kid need to call him old, for one, and now disregard his request? Hikage or not, it was still impolite, after all, he was trying to train the blond.

"I want to be sure that you can actually make one."

Naruto sighed this time, because of the fact that Kakashi had to see it to believe it. Did the silver-haired Jounin have no faith in him? Nevertheless, Naruto held out his right hand, palm facing up, and formed the familiar swirling sphere of a _Rasengan_. Kakashi recognized it easily, because for one, no other jutsu looked like it, and two, because his sensei _was_ Naruto's father after all. After having been around Arashi so long, it would've been impossible to forget how one of his sensei's best moves looked, or even sounded for that matter. Yes, Naruto truly was his sensei's son...

"I see," Kakashi murmured, his eyes narrowing further and his face becoming serious. "So, Jiraiya-sama believes that you can succeed, whereas your father failed?"

'_Father?_' the three Genin of Team 7 thought.

"Failed?" Naruto repeated.

Kakashi held out his own right hand, an exact replica of Naruto's jutsu forming in his open palm. The blond simply gaped at the Jounin's hand, as if it weren't real. Huh, after all, who wouldn't have their jaws slacked and in disbelief when someone just performed the same jutsu as you, the same one that supposedly only his father and Jiraiya knew.

"I see you're surprised," the one-eyed Jounin commented half-cheerily. "I'm not surprised that you're surprised, because Jiraiya-sama's memory wanes when it comes to these little irrelevant things."

"I-Irrelevant!?" the blond Hikage stuttered out. "You knowing the _Rasengan_ surely _is_ relevant! I'll _kill_ that old coot when I see him again!"

"It _is_ irrelevant. I was taught _Rasengan_ by Jiraiya-sama to keep your father's legacy living, at least in the form of jutsu. When he found that you were still alive, he taught _you_ the _Rasengan_. My knowing it doesn't matter anymore now that you're here. It will die with me and live on with you, it's as simple as that."

"Wait a minute!" Sakura interrupted. "The _Rasengan_ was Yondaime's jutsu! That would mean..."

"Yeah, Yondaime was Naruto's father," Kakashi clarified in a bored tone. "Like father like son I guess. His father was a prodigy who became the youngest ever Hokage, just as Naruto is probably the youngest Kage, or around there."

"Actually, Kasumi of Kirigakure no Sato is youngest," corrected Naruto. "But she's more around your skill level."

"..." '_Does he enjoy contradicting me?_'

"Enough chit-chat. Why did you make a _Rasengan_ yourself?" Naruto growled. "If there's no reason for me to keep up the jutsu, I might as well cancel it."

"Ah, I made one myself because I wanted to clash our _Rasengan_ together," Kakashi said cheerily, his eyes curving up into a 'U' shape. "Is there a problem? Or is it that you think you can't beat mine..."

Naruto stopped all his actions abruptly, his eyes widening and his head whipping around to face Kakashi. The Jounin had just mocked his skill and bravery, something very few people even dared to do. His own pride had just been attacked and injured, and he would _not_ let this pass without consequence. Oh yes, the cyclops would pay dearly.

"I accept your challenge," the blond stated grimly, spreading his legs and bringing his right arm back. "Whenever you're ready."

"I'm ready," retorted the silver-haired Jounin, setting himself into a similar stance. "Are _you_? It's okay if you back out at the last minute..."

"Bring it on, you one-eyed freak!" Naruto snarled before charging forward.

"As you wish, short one," the blond's opponent growled darkly, also charging.

Within seconds, the two were within katana distance, then punching distance, then wrestling distance, before the two thrust their own respective swirling orbs of energy into their opponent's. A tiny shock wave blasted at the impact, blowing away anything within ten feet that was not anchored to the floor. The two energies fought for dominance, creating spheres of influence and power around the two. Unfortunately, unlike the _Chidori_ or _Raikiri_, the _Rasengan_ wasn't something you could just pump more chakra into, thus the two opponents' jutsu were at the same level of destruction.

**BOOM**

The two flew away from each other as the spheres of influence collapsed and exploded outwards. Kakashi slid along the ground while Naruto began performing back flips. In the end, neither had won and neither were injured. This only served to wound the blond's pride further, as he couldn't make Kakashi eat the words that had earlier damaged that same pride.

Kakashi sighed, bringing up his left hand to run through his hair.

"You've improved greatly since I last saw you, Naruto," he muttered loudly enough for the blond to hear. "Just like your mother."

It was then that the Jounin realized his mistake. Naruto's eyes widened visibly, his breathing quickening. Kakashi knew that he shouldn't have mentioned the blond's mother; it would lead to strife for Naruto, and strife was something the thirteen-year-old shouldn't experience at this point in time. He strove to find a way to avert the incoming crisis, to no avail.

"Did you... know my mother?" Naruto growled in a low tone.

"Ah, take a break you guys," Kakashi told the Genin. He then proceeded to take Naruto by the shoulders and lead him away from Team Seven.

At about fifty feet in distance from his students, Kakashi began pacing. How should he break it to the blond? Be truthful? Lie?

"I just want to know..."

Kakashi sighed for about the umpteenth time, before stuffing his hands in his pockets and staring into Naruto's eyes. He could find no anger, no sadness, only a want for that information, information about family that he had never had. A family that could have given him love never experienced as a young child. It made Kakashi cringe.

"Alright," he let out slowly. "Your mother, her name was Uzumaki Naomi. She was a Jounin from Kumogakure no Sato; by staging her own death during a mission, she traveled to Konoha to live out a peaceful life without battle or death. Here, she met your father while he was still a Jounin with a Genin team. By the time I'd turned Jounin myself, sensei was engaged to her. Unfortunately, she died during the Kyuubi attack, leaving the hospital immediately after your birth to assist in the slowing it down."

"I see," Naruto murmured sadly. "So she's dead, just like dad."

"Well, she..."

"What is it?"

Kakashi scratched his head sheepishly, catching Naruto's attention. What would make the normally nonchalant Jounin do such a thing, unless it was truly embarrassing, or even personal? Perhaps it was the admission that he was gay, or that he had feelings for his sensei's fiancée... Okay, check that, maybe just the admission that he was gay...

"Your mother, she still has living relatives."

The only thing that could be heart in the training ground was the noises of crows and the bickering of Team 7. Then again, they were always bickering and thus could be considered unneeded noise.

"WHAT!?"

xxxx

"_When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses." Joyce Brothers_

xxxx

Naruto trudged along a well-traveled dirt road, his arms itching to bring out his chakra fangs and to just slice – it didn't matter what, as long as it helped him rid himself of some frustration and annoyance. Just twenty-four hours ago, Kakashi had told him that he had living relatives, in Kumogakure of all places. A former enemy, and one that still held contempt towards Konoha, yet his only remaining family resided on the opposite side. Fate worked in strange ways.

Seeing the urgency of the matter and the shock in Naruto's eyes, the Jounin had suggested that they put off the nature manipulation training until the blond returned from visiting his family, should they be willing to meet with him or even speak with him for that matter. He _was_ entering an alliance with Konoha after all, and who knows what could happen.

He'd left immediately towards Rai no Kuni, taking only necessary equipment with him and leaving his two bodyguards behind. They did _not_ need to see the family reunion.

A disturbance to the left in the nearby forest set off all of the blond's internal alarms, his body stiffening and instinctively reaching for his shuriken holster. Fingering a kunai, which ironically belonged in the shuriken holster, he tensed as the trees shook and the presences of hostiles grew stronger. As a Kage, he would be hard-pressed to lose again nukenin, let alone bandits, but he wasn't going to take any chances.

A figure burst out of the tree line, a variety of cuts and gashes on her body.

Wait a second... _her_?

Naruto did a double-take, catching sight of her blond hair before she disappeared into the tree line on the other side of the road. How strange... judging from her injuries, she would be being pursued by enemy ninja.

Eight shinobi leaped out of the tree line and landed on the road, all of them bearing the mark of a nukenin, a slash through their Iwa hitai-ate. They looked around, obviously in search of the mysterious kunoichi who had seemed to outsmart the eight men. As luck would have it, one of them spotted him. God damned luck.

At the very limit of his senses, he felt the kunoichi stop her travel abruptly. That didn't bode well. Whether or not the enemy was following you doesn't mean that you can stop fleeing.

The nukenin spoke amongst themselves, muttering under their breaths to the tallest shinobi of the group, and the obvious leader.

"Kill him."

Naruto smirked as he spread his feet, his arms held out in front of him. Oh, this was going to be _fun_.

xxxx

"_Family means putting your arms around each other and being there." Barbara Bush_

xxxx

The blonde had begun backtracking, wondering why her pursuers had stopped. She _had_ seen a lone child on the road, with a really fancy get up... That was it. The nukenin had stopped to mug that poor kid. The mere thought of it brought anger to her expression, which served to increase the speed in which she moved. She had initially been fleeing because of the terrible odds, having fought thirteen enemies and killing five of them with elaborately-set traps.

She stopped at the tree line and looked out. The shinobi had now surrounded the boy, who looked strangely... happy? Perhaps he was so miserable being rich that he welcomed death?

They rushed forward, and it was to her eternal surprise that two katana left the boy's sleeves.

xxxx

"_In times of test, family is best." Burmese Proverb_

xxxx

He ducked under a katana swing, fast reflexes coming into play.

'_I'm out of practice,_' Naruto noted when he felt his legs strain slightly. He'd have to actually start making use of Chisihio Bunshin that Kyuubi has mentioned to get uninterrupted workouts. It wouldn't do for the Hikage to become like Sandaime.

Naruto summoned his two chakra fangs, the katana leaving his sleeves and into his firm grip. Bringing his arms together, he slashed outwards with both weapons to slice the offending shinobi into three pieces.

Three shinobi rushed towards him from the left, right, and behind, their respective weapons drawn. As the first body continued its fall, intestines and other such vital organs falling out, Naruto spread his stance wider and brought his zanbatou to bear. Bring it swinging down in front of him, he flipped a switch and separated it into two blades of varying size. Hopping into the air, the blond parried the swings of the two shinobi coming in from the sides by twisting around and upside down, crossing the two blades protectively.

He tossed up the smaller blade, abandoning its chakra fang-like effect to flip the switch again to separate the larger sword into two smaller blades. The first, predictably, became weightless as he began running chakra through it, while the second began crackling with electricity. The small blade continued its upward spiral as Naruto blocked a second swing by bringing up the blade in his left hand and counterattacked with the blade in his right, cutting off the head of the shinobi.

As the body of the first fallen shinobi hit the floor and the head of the second began its descent, the remaining six shinobi regrouped around him, once again in a circle.

"Who... no, _what_ are you?" the leader demanded, the sweat visible on his face.

Naruto remained silent, and instead slammed both blades into the ground, caught the first blade which was still falling, and slammed that into the ground too. He went through several hand seals, his expression serious.

'_Kurodenkou no Jutsu._'

He held out his hands, two balls of black lightning forming around it and crackling fiercely. Naruto's face remained emotionless, save for the smirk that he reserved for people who were going to die within the hour.

"K-Kurodenkou no Uzumaki Naruto!" one shinobi yelled in a panic. It was the last word he'd speak.

Naruto raised his right hand, the black lightning firing off and blazing its way towards the one who'd spoken.

Said enemy tried to leap into the air, only to have the lightning redirect itself and vaporize him in midair. The remaining shinobi, shocked out of inactivity, began to move forward to assault the blond.

'_Too slow._'

Shooting the remaining lightning from his hand straight into the air, Naruto then disappeared in the blink of an eye, his chakra fangs dancing gracefully. It cut through the air easily without loss of velocity, heading towards their targets with pinpoint accuracy. He wasn't named the Kurodenkou for being slow and blocky.

A scream of short-lived pain was silenced by a slice to the jugular and voice box.

**Thud.**

Two heads were sent flying into the trees, narrowly missing the hidden kunoichi.

**Thud – Thud.**

A torso became detached from the rest of its body, the expression of the shinobi wide with shock.

**Thud.**

Two arms suddenly fell off from the owner's shoulders, the shinobi realizing what had just happened moments afterwards.

**Thud.**

The leader was left remaining, the only other shinobi alive writhing on the floor in pain at the loss of both of his arms. Blood sprayed everywhere, from necks, vital organs, and flailing arteries, to bleeding stumps and headless necks. The remaining upright nukenin, began trembling slightly, but narrowed his gaze and kept his ground. How brave – Foolish, but brave.

At least, that was the thought running through his head at the time. That is, until the leader raised a hand and thirty more nukenin of various villages appeared around him.

Naruto uttered a single word, describing perfectly the situation.

"Bullshit."

They attacked, some going within melee range to perform Taijutsu and Kenjutsu, some staying back and throwing a covering fire of kunai and shuriken. Some began hand seals for Ninjutsu, whilst some just stood there looking smugly at him. Oh, he'd wipe those smug looks off their faces... _permanently_.

Naruto swung his body back, and using chakra to keep his feet planted to the floor, he avoided a slash aimed at the waist. His body continued down, making a right angle with his legs, avoiding a second slash by the same offender. The blond deftly swung both of his forgotten chakra fangs inwards, slicing both his opponent and his two katana. They weren't called chakra fangs because they bit down, that was for sure.

Expelling the chakra from his feet, he performed a back-flip, landing expertly on the ground and slashing the chest of yet another nukenin, the blood spurting out like a frenzied pump.

'_Two down, twenty-nine more to go._'

He noted darkly that the kunoichi was watching, but making no move to assist him. He made a note to scare her after he was done, and badly. _Really _badly. Turning his attention back to his enemies, he spread his arms and legs and used his right leg to push off and begin spinning like a top.

'_Kiroi Gufuu!_'

Letting out chakra from his tenketsu (He did have as good a chakra control as a Hyuuga), the spin carried the chakra, and similar to the Hyuuga clan's _Kaiten_, began hitting anything within range of his chakra fang. The primary difference was that this was used to kill, while _Kaiten_ was used to protect.

Five unfortunate nukenin that happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time fell to the ground in bloody pieces, appendages and the such separated from their bodies. Just as the spin died down, Naruto spied an incoming jutsu, specifically a _Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu_. He cursed his bad luck – these guys were better than the ones he'd fought at the nukenin hideout. His hands blurred at the speed that his hand seals were being performed.

'_Doton: Doryuuheki!_'

Naruto spit out a great deal of mud, which immediately hardened, creating a stone barrier in front of him.

'_Doton defeats Suiton,_' he knew, and grinned smugly.

The water dragon slammed itself onto the barrier, but the blond's prediction came true as the earthen barrier withstood the beating and remained standing. It seemed as if he'd need to go all out, if this was any indication of the strength of the nukenin. Charging what chakra that he had that he hadn't used already into his hand, he grimaced.

'_Can't I get a damned break? Seishin Utsu!_'

His chakra-charged fist slammed it's way through two nukenin, but he wasn't done. Naruto kept going, fully intent on utilizing the jutsu to its maximum – by killing as many people with it in one go. Following this strategy, five more nukenin fell before the jutsu wore off, leaving the blond in yet another state of chakra exhaustion – minor again.

'_Fourteen down, seventeen more to go,_' the blond thought tiredly. '_Jeez, I'm starting to run low on chakra._'

Because of the number of nukenin he had cut down and the speed in which he had done it, the rest advanced cautiously at the slumped over Kage-level shinobi. The blond's hand twitched, then tightened itself into a fist. His head raised up and glared daggers at the nukenin.

'_I have to finish this in the next move,_' he decided. '_Now, what jutsu to use..._'

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_," he muttered under his breath after placing his hands in the cross seal. Three Kage Bunshin appeared next to him, each one smirking.

Each one rushed forward, whilst the real Naruto began going through yet another set of hand seals.

The timing had to be perfect.

A nukenin stabbed a Bunshin, but instead of disappearing in puff of smoke, it lived on, grinning all the while. The leader's eyes widened marginally. This was...

'_Bunshin Daibakuha._'

With that thought, the three scattered Kage Bunshin exploded in a brilliant wave of orange and red, taking with them ten nukenin who had been too shocked by the outcome to move at all.

'_Kurodenkou no Jutsu!_'

Once again, black lightning shot from his palms, blasting through the large amount of smoke sent flying by the explosion and killing anyone within bouncing range of the jutsu. He heard several screams, but could see nothing. As the smoke cleared, he saw six dead nukenin, all having been hit by the bouncing strikes. This wasn't good, there was one more. Where was he?

Naruto's question was answered as the last remaining nukenin – the leader – fell down from the sky, his eyes gleaming with murderous intent and a katana swinging down towards the blond's head. There wasn't enough time to block, especially at his current level of exhaustion.

That was when the leader disintegrated with a bang, shocking the blond.

'_What the... hell?_'

'_**The black lightning that you shot earlier into the sky... gravity pulled it down before it exited the atmosphere**_' Kyuubi spoke.

'_Is... that even possible? I mean, lightning goes at a high velocity, even more so when it's demonic. Also, there's the fact that it dissipates over time._'

'_**Don't argue with me, **_**gaki**' the kitsune growled menacingly. '_**All I know is what happened. Don't bug me for the details.**_'

'_You're useless, do you know that? USELESS!_'

When Kyuubi did not respond, Naruto assumed that his argument had won, said argument being that Kyuubi was all talk and no work. It was true now, though years ago the kitsune could've contested that fact. The kitsune youkai had grown lazy as the blond's individual strength grew, preferring to watch from within the safety of the cage rather than intervene.

Lazy teme.

"You can come out now," Naruto called out to the hidden kunoichi, who happened to still be watching him.

He felt her stiffen, but made no move to reveal herself.

Troublesome woman.

He estimated that he had enough chakra to possibly go one-on-one with the already injured kunoichi should he need to. He _was_ in better shape than his possible opponent after all.

Naruto gave her a few more minutes. If she didn't come out by then, well... god help her, he'd drag her out by force. Two minutes, then three, then five minutes passed, without any change in the situation. The kunoichi still had no intent of leaving the 'safety' of the tree, and was making no move to do anything other than observe him.

Annoying...

xxxx

"_The family is one of nature's masterpieces." George Santayana_

xxxx

He had called out to her, the child that had killed thirty-eight nukenin by himself. Well, he wasn't _exactly_ a child. With a height of 5'5", he could probably be attributed to be a short adult, if not for the very young look of his face. Her own height was 5'9" at the age of nineteen, just four short inches taller than the blond – the blond that was currently looking at the tree that she was in.

She blinked, and he was gone. Her eyes widened, sensing him behind her. She attempted to slash at him with the kunai she was holding... _attempted_. He grabbed her wrist and held it back, his face scrunched up and looking at her in scrutiny.

"Hey," he began, "why are you so damn rude?"

"Huh?" was the only intelligible reply that left her mouth. How embarrassing.

"Let's try that again. I called nicely for you to come out of the tree. You didn't. I waited patiently for you to change your mind. You didn't. I then decided to come to _you_, and you greet me by trying to attack me. What kind of manners are those?"

The kunoichi's left eye twitched in annoyance.

'_Who the hell is this guy that he starts lecturing me?_'

"... And even more, I took out those nukenin for you, and I don't even get a simple 'thank you'!"

She bopped him on the head.

**Whack.**

"What the hell was that for!?" he cried out, clutching at the bump that was slowly swelling on his head. "Screw you, hoe! I, Uzumaki Naruto, will _not_ stand for this kind of treatment!"

Her rapidly twitching eye stopped immediately as she stared at him. The emotions splayed across her face traveled quickly from surprise, to disbelief, and finally to laughter. She laughed loud and hard at Naruto, who stood there like a poor doll, unmoving and also confused.

"What's so damned funny?" he demanded, taking a step forward. "What the hell's so funny?"

The kunoichi managed to stop her laughter with quite a bit of effort, though she was left still panting from laughing so long.

"Heh, you... you said you were from the Uzumaki clan," she murmured, pointing at him.

"Uh no, I said that my name was Uzumaki Naruto," he clarified. "I never said anything about belonging to the clan."

"Three reasons why you can't be an Uzumaki," she said while holding up three fingers. "One: If you were an Uzumaki, you'd have used your kekke genkai in the fight, simply because it would've made it much easier. Two: Your fighting style doesn't reflect the Uzumaki Taijutsu. Three: There are no Uzumaki existing outside of Kumogakure."

"..."

"So, who are you really?" This was asked offhandedly, as she had regained her composure completely and was now leaning against the tree trunk.

"I already said that my name was Uzumaki Naruto," the blond shinobi grumbled under his breath, whirling away. "Damned Kakashi, sending me to Kumogakure to find lost family and all I get is some kunoichi who laughs at me."

"Wait... you know Hatake Kakashi?"

Naruto turned around, eyebrow raised.

"Of _course_ I know _the_ Hatake Kakashi, _the_ Hatake Kakashi that has a Sharingan eye and is rumored to know over one-thousand jutsu," he drawled sarcastically. "You heard me the first-"

"Alright, alright!" she roared, interrupting him. "Jeez, I ask a question and you get all sarcastic on me."

"Maybe I shouldn't have helped you out," the blond mumbled under his breath, "but you don't see me complaining."

"How am I supposed to believe that you're an Uzumaki anyways?" she said, facing away from him towards the general direction of Kumogakure. "It's easy enough to fake being someone. A Henge is all it takes to get blond hair and blue eyes."

She heard Naruto cough, alongside the tinkling of metal objects.

Turning around to ask what was up, she froze at the sight of a Hiraishin kunai dangling off of the blond's index finger.

"Is _this_ proof enough?"

"H-How did... where... who..."

"Speak in _complete_ sentences please."

"Where the hell did you get those?" the blond kunoichi demanded. "Those are the Yondaime Hokage's special kunai!"

"_Exactly_."

"Huh?"

"They were the _Yondaime's_," Naruto pressed on. "Judging from your reaction, you seem to know Yondaime. Or rather, you know your _uncle_."

He shrugged in victory, smirking all the while.

"Yeah," he said in response to her shocked look, "I figured out that you're an Uzumaki. From your reaction, you _knew_ that Yondaime was a relative of yours, and my having possession of one of your uncle's precious kunai blew your entire cover. Well, not _entirely_. I was already onto you when you started explaining why I couldn't be an Uzumaki."

"Then..."

"Yup. I'm Kazama Arashi's _one-and-only_ son!" he exclaimed proudly, throwing out his chest. "Though I still have no idea who my mother was, or what she was like," he ended lamely.

"You could've stolen the kunai," the blonde muttered as she ran her hands through her hair. She was now trying to convince herself that the shinobi in front of her wasn't her long lost cousin. A long lost cousin that was six years her junior, yet was stronger than her. It... just wasn't _fair_! She had knowledge of the Uzumaki clan's kekke genkai that he didn't know. She had knowledge of their formidable Taijutsu style. She knew everything he didn't, and was even his senior, yet...

"Argh!" she yelled as she began pounding repeatedly on the tree trunk. A small crater began forming on the trunk, due to the force she was applying to slam the tree with her fists."

"Ah," Naruto sighed in contentment, "family, what a beautiful thing..."

xxxx

"_Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family." Anthony Brandt_

xxxx

I'm gonna use more and more teeny-tiny bits of Japanese vocabulary, the most basic and easily remembered ones. Oh, and if I got my facts wrong (Nature Manipulation), please tell me. It was all from memory and past research burned into my memory, so it might not be accurate. I also made Naruto more human-like by giving him a fiery temper.

I also added a Strength Level to the end. It will have in it any ninja mentioned in the chapter. Why did I place Sandaime so low? In canon, Orochimaru was only toying with Sandaime for the longest time, bathing in his victory and letting the battle drag on and on, which let Sandaime eventually perform Shiki Fuujin.

**Strength Level**

Kazama Arashi - 20

Uchiha Itachi, Jiraiya - 14

Hoshigaki Kisame - 13

Uzumaki Naruto - 12

Sandaime - 11

Deidara - 10

Tobi, Hatake Kakashi, Bakuhatsuteki Kasumi – 9

Sabaku no Gaara – 8.5

Hikaru, Mitarashi Anko - 8

Akane – 7.5

Uchiha Sasuke – 3.5

Haruno Sakura - 1.5

**Vocabulary**

_Hatake _**Kakashi –**_Field _**Scarecrow**

_Kazama_**Arashi** - **Storm**

_Mitarashi _**Anko - **_Mitarashi _**Red Bean Jam **(Note, both Mitarashi and Anko are ingredients for dango, Anko's favorite food.)

Fuuin – Seal, the kind that are drawn onto a scroll.

Fuuin Jutsu – Sealing Techniques

Gaki – Brat

Jutsu-shiki – Technique Formula

Konoha no Fuuin Shishou – Konoha's Seal Master

Konoha no Kiroi Senkou – Konoha's Yellow Flash

Kuchiyose Fuuin – Summoning Seal

Sannin – Three Ninja

Sayonara – Goodbye

Sennin - Hermit

Tensai – Genius, prodigy

**Jutsu List**

Fuuin Jutsu

**Kuchiyose Fuuin (Summoning Seal)** – A-Rank – A seal that supposedly 'summons' the user whose chakra is infused within the seal, its actual purpose is to pull the user to it upon activation. The user is pulled to the location at nearly light speed, and is the same seal that is placed upon the handles of the Hiraishin kunai.

Ninjutsu

_General_

**Bunshin Daibakuha (Clone Great Explosion)** – A-Rank – A split-off with the original Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, the user places extra chakra into the Bunshin, chakra that they can activate and manipulate to explode at any chosen time. The more chakra placed into the Bunshin, the greater the resulting explosion is, because there is more fuel. This can be used strategically to take out many opponents during scouting, a normal Kage Bunshin method, or simply to kamikaze the enemy in mass numbers.

**Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)** – S-Rank – Yondaime's premier jutsu, it basically allows the user to 'teleport' to any given location. By placing jutsu-shiki – most commonly on the famed Hiraishin kunai – the user is sent to the location of the jutsu-shiki at nearly the speed of light. Because of the extreme speed in which the user moves, the side effect of the jutsu is the unmistakable flash of color that the enemy sees before falling prey to the user.

**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)** – B-Rank – Unlike the normal Bunshin no Jutsu, the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu creates real flesh-and-blood copies of the user. They can fight, experience emotions, and perform jutsu just like the user. When using jutsu though, they have to use the store of chakra that was placed in them during creation. The amount of chakra in Kage Bunshin can be altered. Any information and mental experience that the Kage Bunshin experiences is also passed on to the user when they are killed or dispelled, which makes it particularly useful for missions involving reconnaissance and stealth.

**Kiroi Gufuu (Yellow Typhoon) –** Unique, C-Rank – A Ninjutsu that doesn't require hand seals, which coincidentally seems to be Naruto's forte, this jutsu is basic. By expelling chakra from the tenketsu and spinning, similar to the Hyuuga clan's Kaiten, the user can deflect projectiles and certain Ninjutsu. By using one or more katana to go along with the chakra-charged spin, the spin itself becomes both offensive and defensive. The single flaw to this is that the user is vulnerable when the spin is slowing down and ending.

**Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique)** – D-Rank – This jutsu allows the user to move at high speeds, with an onlooker often mistaking it for teleportation. The user uses chakra to boost their speed and reflexes, the jutsu requiring more chakra as the distance that the user needs to travel increases. Any extra things, such as flying sand or leaves, serve as a distraction for the user's movement, and perhaps for a bit of style as well.

**Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere) – **A-Rank – The Rasengan is one of two widely known Ninjutsu that was created by the Yondaime Hokage himself. It requires no hand seals to perform, relying instead on the user's manipulation of released chakra, the result being that it cannot be copied by Doujutsu such as the Sharingan. Using such little chakra thanks to its compression of small amounts of chakra into a spinning orb of doom, the user can perform this infinitely more times than someone using the Chidori or Raikiri. When hit by the Rasengan, the intense spinning of the orb will oftentimes rearrange the inner organs of the target, or even blasting all the organs out of their body, resulting in death. This can be easily countered though by performing long-range combat, though said combat can be countered by using the Rasengan in conjunction with the Hiraishin no Jutsu..

**Seishin Utsu (Spirit Strike)** – A-Rank – A jutsu that is similar to the Rasengan in that it requires no hand seals, the user simply forces out a great amount of chakra out of their arm, from elbow to the tip of the finger. Unlike the Chidori or Raikiri, which forms a ball of lightning in the user's palm, the user manipulates the chakra outside of the body to sharpen, creating an 'aura' of destruction around the arm. Anything that comes into contact with the chakra will be cut, and being hit directly will result in death. It's flaws and counter-counters are the same as the Rasengan.

_Earth_

**Doton: Doryuuheki (Earth Release: Earth Encampment Wall) – **B-Rank – The user gathers up chakra in their gut, expelling the chakra and manipulating it into mud as soon as it enters the throat and leaves the mouth by using hand seals. Upon hitting solid floor, the mud hardens up to the point where it can easily withstand exploding tags and jutsu. The hardening of the mud is nearly instantaneous, thanks to the excess amount of chakra embedded into it. Entire walls can be created by this jutsu, to block anything from fireballs to tidal waves.

_Fire_

**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique) – **C-Rank – Similar to the Doryuuheki, the user releases pent-up chakra from their gut and manipulates the chakra into flames as the chakra enters the throat, thus breathing out fire. Depending on the force that the flames are expelled, the fireball will either stay put or begin moving on a path of destruction. The size of the fireball is relative to the amount of chakra used in the jutsu, and is one of Konohagakure's most basic Katon jutsu.

_Lightning_

**Chidori (Thousand Birds) –** A-Rank – Created by Hatake Kakashi at the age of thirteen, the Chidori is his sole original move. The user performs hand seals and channels chakra through their arm and into their hand, manipulating it into lightning. The strength of the jutsu depends on the speed of the thrust, thus it requires high speed movement. It's sole flaw is that it requires the user to run straight forward, which makes it easy for an enemy to counter it because of the reduced reaction speed caused by moving at such a high velocity. This is countered by both Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke with the use of their Sharingan eyes.

**Raiton: Kurodenkou no Jutsu (Lightning Release: Black Lightning Technique) –** Unique, A-Rank – Like all of Naruto's Ninjutsu, this is yet another destructive jutsu. Splitting from his forte of non-hand-seal jutsu, this is similar in nature to the Chidori and Raikiri. By performing hand seals to channel the demon chakra through the arm and into the hand, the user has for themselves the basic jutsu. With the addition of more hand seals in the beginning, the user adds the ability to be able to shoot the lightning a certain distance. Because of the natural qualities of demonic chakra, the Kurodenkou travels farther and faster, losing less potency at farther distances. Also as a side effect of the chakra used, it homes in on its target.

_Water_

**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Blast)** – B-Rank – Because of its extreme complexity, the user is required to perform fifty-four hand seals. Once done, a gigantic serpentine water dragon is formed from water – though some shinobi can use their own chakra to create water – to be launched at the enemy. Though slow moving and bulky, it is strong enough to wipe out most counter-jutsu and is enough to knock out an enemy with the mini tidal wave that it creates after missing. Should it not miss though, the enemy will either be incapacitated or have suffered critical internal injuries.


	12. Chaos

**Code:** Well, you may notice that this chapter is inconsistent with a lot of stuff I've written before. This is because I'm planning to overhaul and completely rewrite the series from scratch after I post this up.

**Zurui:** Indeed, Chapter 1 is already being overhauled and rewritten. This is going to be a huge undertaking, considering the story is reaching 100,000 words not taking into consideration the rewrites.

**Code:** Also, since I, the author, am in senior year, I somehow have even more, and even less time to write. I've got scholarships to apply for, colleges to worry about, schoolwork to work on, tests to study for, and video games to play.

**Zurui:** Code's had the Chapter 11 file and about 1,000 words written for about three months on his laptop, and now he's been motivated after reading so many good manga on the Internet!

**Code:** My imagination has been revitalized!! Hoorah! Let's all hope I keep writing after this!

**Zurui:** Ah, and I suddenly had a boom in inspiration and the rest of the chapter came together. However, writing battle for so long really screwed with my imagination. I'm better with plots than combat, it seems... Anyways, Chapter 11 is finally here! KAMPAI!

**Side Note: As I didn't have the time to finish up Jutsu descriptions and such, I'll be posting this up and then editing the document later with the full descriptions. It's just for user convenience and it's not totally necessary after all.**

**PS: There's a poll up. VOTE!**

**PS#2: To those who have already reviewed, feel free to PM/Email me your review of the chapter instead.**

**Black Lightning**

Chapter 11: Chaos

xxxx

"_Chaos is the score upon which reality is written._" Henry Miller

xxxx

"This... could be the end," Sarutobi groaned tiredly, his face dripping with sweat. "This old man is already worn out... Naruto, should I fall in battle, I want you to know that I've always considered you a grandson."

"Stop joking around!" yelled Naruto, his fourteen-year-old facial features taking on the beginnings of a panic that he hadn't felt in many years. "You're going to live! I won't let you die!" After losing his comrades, he couldn't even begin to think of losing the one adult that had truly cared for him during the first eight years of his life.

"He... Orochimaru... you must stop him in my stead," the old man coughed out, wheezing and gasping for breath. "You must not let him continue his experiments! -wheeze- "Konoha shinobi or not, you have the -cough- will of fire within you... Live on and carry that feeling with you for the rest of your life!"

"Sandaime-sama!" roared Kakashi, who had just dispatched his enemy before whirling around. "Behind you!"

With a mighty roar of willpower, the Hokage rose and delivered a spinning roundhouse kick to the enemy that had tried to sneak up behind him. All around him were the sounds of battle; screams, explosions, splintering trees, and the spattering of blood. Kirigakure was in chaos, a chaos that had not been seen since the final battle of the last civil war, where each side had laid waste to the other with not a single survivor.

They had come out of nowhere. Hundreds of ninja had descended from the misty treetops, falling upon the sparsely defended village. Already weakened from the purgation of the nukenin a few days earlier, a large part of Kiri's shinobi force was unavailable. Thus, a slaughter began, which was only slowed by the arrival of Konohagakure and Sunagakure's entourages of elite ninja. Uzumaki Naruto himself had joined the battle, justifying Raito no Kuni's sincerity of the alliance. As Hikage, Naruto inspired all around him despite his very young age, and this had helped to stem the tide of battle, but only temporarily.

"We're still outnumbered fifteen to one!" Hyuuga Hiashi reported. He, as one of the most senior and powerful shinobi in Konoha and leader of the Hyuuga clan, had been chosen as a bodyguard. Now he served as an intelligence officer, gathering as much information as he could on the current battle. "No, make that twenty to one! They just received reinforcements from the south!"

"..."

"Sandaime-jiisan, you have to rest," Naruto urged, nudging the old man gently to the ground. "We still have a ways to go."

"Indeed," he agreed, "but I'm not sure this old man can go any further. I'm at my limit, Naruto. Not even I can handle this many shinobi, and neither can you."

With a great shudder, a giant typhoon rose from the village's epicenter, the Mizukage's HQ, carrying with it both allied and enemy shinobi alike.

"Looks like they couldn't get away in time," Kakashi commented solemnly. "It seems like the Mizukage will need some help. She's becoming desperate if she has to involve her own men."

"Kasumi will be able to handle herself for now," the blond replied offhandedly, turning his attention back to the situation at hand. "What we have to worry about now is defeating all of these shinobi."

"Kakashi," croaked Sandaime, his throat parched, "take Hiashi and go northwest... thin out the shinobi there so that Kiri's ANBU can divert more troops to the south."

"Hai!" said the two in unison, before heading out at top speed.

"Naruto," began Sarutobi, "Naruto... you must leave me and head to the north gate, where enemy lines are at their weakest. I'm not sure how long Kiri will last, or how much time I can give you, but know that you must leave this place immediately. Hurry!"

"But-"

An explosion rocked the ground underneath them, and in the distance, plumes of black smoke rose from the general direction of the south gate.

"You must hurry!" Sarutobi repeated. "If you stay, we will both die. You at least must escape from this place!"

Another explosion shook the ground, this time the smoke coming from the east gate. Electricity could be seen dissipating into the air, the result of a powerful Raiton jutsu. A series of minor explosions followed it in a line, indicating that the battle was growing heavier as more enemy reinforcements arrived. Kiri would eventually fall, and everyone fighting knew that fact. The most important reason for fighting though, was to buy time for the civilians to escape and the Kage to form final battle plans, if they even had the time to come up with such stratagems.

"Please, as the final wish of an old man, _go_."

"... Take care," Naruto choked out. "I might have left when I was young, but you were always my grandfather-figure. I won't forget you, and the next time we meet, you have to treat me to all-you-can-eat ramen."

"Yes," agreed Sarutobi, "the next time we meet. Sayonara, Naruto."

"Sayonara..."

xxxx

"_Chaos is the score upon which reality is written._" Henry Miller

xxxx

Kasumi, though still very young at the ripe age of sixteen, was not the Mizukage without reason. In present-day Kirigakure, she alone had the chakra to perform A-Rank ninjutsu without becoming fatigued. There had been a few others in the past, two of which were Momochi Zabuza and Hoshigaki Kisame, the latter which had infiltrated her village mere days ago and had participated in Kiri's battle against the nukenin. Of course his appearance had startled her, even more so when she found out whose side he was on. However, nothing came close to describing how much shock she was in now.

Displayed in front of her were her four squads of her own ANBU, impaled into chunks of pavement. Some were still living, moaning and screaming in the intense pain they were experiencing. Those that were unlucky enough to live had most of their torso gone with their heart still intact, forcing them to suffer a slow and painful death.

Words couldn't even express how much nausea she was feeling at the grim outcome. Never before had she seen such a gruesome sight.

"Kasumi-sama," one of her ANBU escorts whispered hoarsely, "we must leave... _now_."

The sound of a blade drawing drew all their attention to their backs, but when they turned around, there was no one there.

"G-agh!"

Whirling around, the remainder could see a dead ANBU laying on the floor, decapitated. His head, still donning the white porcelain mask, rolled down the street. One of her escorts, a newly appointed ANBU, removed his mask to throw up on the ground. It had been far too early for the young man to experience the horrors that usually came with the job, and now was the limit.

"Who's there?!" demanded Kasumi, when the wind picked up, scattering her violet hair through the wind.

_Unknown._

"Answer me!"

_Unseen._

"Kasumi-sama!" repeated the first ANBU, "we must leave! One squad, around her! The rest of you spread out in formation C!"

"_Undeterred,_" a sandy voice whispered through the air. "_We are but shadows_."

As all the ANBU dropped down into fighting stances, a lone figure rose from Kasumi's shadow. In his hands were two wicked-looking daggers. Along its curved edge were sharp spines, designed to rip and tear whatever it caught.

"_Unmatched,_" he whispered into her ears.

Kasumi's eyes widened as the man made his move and the first ANBU, a shidanchou, roared in surprise and anger.

A dagger rose and fell swiftly, leaving no room for resistance, falling upon the violet-haired girl's head, piercing skull and slicing through brain.

At least, that's what would have happened had a fierce roundhouse kick not landed solidly into the man's gut, sending him flying backwards a dozen meters.

"Mizukage-sama!" Maito Gai roared in righteous anger, "Are you alright?!" What a reason to be angry. Three nations, Konoha, Suna, and Kiri, had met here to create an alliance. Instead of escaping war through alliance, war had come for them. Now all hope for peace was lost. Knowing that the children of the future would grow up in a time of strife... it angered him more than anything else. "Foul being, I shall smite you in the name of youth!" he yelled powerfully.

Said man began rising from his fallen position. No definite features could be defined about him during this time, as he wore a dark cloak and blank porcelain mask. Without a sound, he straightened up and changed his grip on the daggers so that the blades pointed backwards. Having discarded the assassination style for an offensive style, he charged quickly, crossing the distance between himself and Gai in seconds.

However, Gai was not considered one of the best taijutsu users in all Konoha for nothing. He stepped to the side and unleashed a powerful roundhouse kick, aiming this time for the upper torso.

The attack was blocked, but the outcome that the assassin expected did not occur. Instead of cutting through the leg by blocking, he found that his blades had hit something very dense and hard.

Gai smirked determinedly and pushed, following it up with a reverse roundhouse kick with his other side, catching his opponent's arms and knocking them aside. Sliding his feet on the ground, he gathered his strength and let out a mighty punch into the gut with a battle cry, sending the man into a building like a bullet. Dust flew through the air from the impact, covering the point of impact in a film of brown particles.

"You must know your enemy to defeat him, or if that does not work, you must be able to see and predict his moves!" Gai said challengingly. "Come!"

"_Indeed,_" the assassin rasped, "_You seem to be a worthy foe._"

He discarded his daggers and charged at the Konoha Jounin quickly, crossing the one-hundred meters of distance between them in two seconds. Giving off a battle roar, he pulled his right arm back and swung fiercely.

Gai had, somehow, known what was coming. Call it a sixth sense if you must, but instead of merely dodging it, he opted to block it with both forearms held to his left. Surprise was evident in his eyes when his opponent's arm turned into something claw-like, like that of a monster, slamming into his defense and sending him flying to the side. Gai recovered quickly and landed safely onto the ground, then jumped into the air to dodge another swipe from the same claw-arm. When he went in to strike a blow to the assassin's back, the left arm swung back, also turning into a large clawed hand. Instead of striking though, the transformed arm grabbed a hold of him.

"Support him!" an ANBU yelled hoarsely, and two of the three squads accompanying Kasumi leaped forwards, drawing their weapons as they dashed towards the assassin.

"_Humph._" He flipped backwards onto a building and retreated, pausing only to give Kasumi a death-glare. "_I'll be back for you._"

"Mizukage-sama!"

"Don't go after him!" she yelled, though it hurt to say it. "I can't waste any more ANBU squads like this. I'm positive that he can handle himself."

"But-"

"There's a reason why the Hokage brought him as a bodyguard!" she snapped at the protester. "Have faith in him!"

"Y-Yes!"

Kasumi allowed her crimson eyes to scan the horizon just once before she and her ANBU escorts made for the center of the village.

xxxx

"_Chaos results when the world changes faster than people._" Anonymous

xxxx

"How goes it, Shin?"

"The battle is progressing well, Jushin-sama."

Far from the battle in the forests outside of Kirigakure was a man. He was seated on top of one of the highest tree branches in the area, allowing him full view of the area around him. His neck-length black hair was buffeted by the wind, for which he used his hand to get it out of his face.

"I should hope so," said the one called Jushin-sama in an authoritative, yet calm voice. "Everything should be going according to plan thus far, however..."

"The Kyuubi child, my lord?" Shin questioned.

"No," Jushin replied, shaking his head. "It is another, a girl. That is all I can distinguish at the moment. Her involvement in the battle may turn the tables, as I had not factored in her presence."

"Shall I take care of her?"

A pause. "Take care of yourself, Shin. She is formidable as no one knows her skills, not even the Kyuubi child."

"I will, my lord," Shin said forcefully, before getting up and disappearing in a gust of wind.

Silence.

"For your own sake, you had better not lose, Shin," Jushin muttered to himself. "I am not one to take failures lightly..."

xxxx

"_When tempest tossed, embrace chaos._" Dean Koontz

xxxx

Naruto sprinted through the chaotic streets of Kiri. Everywhere he went, whichever way he turned to, there were dead bodies littering the floor. Some had their spines snapped in half, others had kunai peppered across their bodies. He'd even saw one with their skin slewed off and still alive and screaming. He'd put the Kiri Chuunin out of his misery. He had never seen such a battlefield before, not even during Akatsuki missions. Chaos reigned everywhere, destruction was wrought upon anything, and death was brought to every moving, living being. Even now, he felt as if the Grim Reaper, the God of Death, Shinigami, was breathing down his neck at this very moment. Something was off, very off, and the reason constantly eluded him.

He was brought back to reality when an exploding kunai landed with a 'chnk' in front of his feet. Pumping chakra into the soles of his boots, he leaped into the air in the nick of time, avoiding an untimely death by explosion, only to see that dozens of shuriken were flying through the air to intercept him.

"You'd think that I'd be able to move around in _some _peace thanks to my reputation," the blond muttered to himself as he began forming hand seals.

_Kumo Tate no Jutsu_.

A thick, chakra-based cloud took shape in front of him, deflecting the attack before being dispelled. Naruto's ascent slowed down, and gravity took hold as his downward acceleration increased. Taking this opportunity, a second volley of shuriken was launched from below, hoping to skewer him the second time.

However, the blond didn't react in the way that they'd expected. Instead of trying to defend once again, Naruto let out his infamous black lightning from his body, creating a 'sphere' that surrounded him. This sphere stopped and cut to pieces all of the shuriken, as well as the unlucky shinobi that he landed next to. Their screams lasted only a second before the lightning cut through their voice boxes and their heads, sending sizzling brain matter and organ mush flying every which way. His malevolent glare alone was enough to send shivers up their spines, not to mention that the sight of their slaughtered comrades were shaking them to pieces; Imagine, a fourteen-year-old and his death glare, scaring shinobi.

'_Well_,' Naruto mused, '_I'm no ordinary fourteen-year-old, am I?_'

'_**Indeed, you are a powerful, idiotic fourteen-year-old.**_'

'_Yes, I _am _power- What the hell did you just say?_'

Silence greeted his question, and inwardly, he fumed at the insult that he had just received on the side.

'_I have more important stuff to worry about right now than to brood on insults._'

"If you want to live, don't ever let me catch sight of you!" he hissed as he sprinted off towards the area where he'd last seen the large Suiton jutsu decimate a part of the village, hoping to heaven that Kasumi would still be there, or at least some place nearby. "I'm going to need her help if I'm going to get out relatively undetected, what with her jutsu's potential for a huge distraction." Unfortunately, the part he was worrying about was where he'd have to try to convince her to perform her jutsu as a distraction for his escape. Hell, he wasn't sure if she'd try to murder him on the spot for the suggestion. There was the key word: _Try_.

xxxx

"_Chaos and Order are not enemies, only opposites._" Richard Garriott

xxxx

Gai put up a mighty struggle in the grip of the person holding him, and it was evident that the assassin was having a bit of trouble keeping the Jounin in his grasp. While his clawed arms held much strength, a human pushing out with all of their strength had much more support than demonic claws trying to close in to crush. As a result, the two were engaged in a lethal game of tug-of-war, as the loser would be open to attack, most probably fatal. That is why they both fought to win, with the assassin using both arms to attempt to crush the Jounin, while Gai pushed out with as much strength as possible, aided by the release of the first gate of the Hachimon, Kaimon.

By this time, both were sweating from the exertion they were placing, and it would have only been a matter of time until one of them lost. This was not to be, however, with the introduction of a fresh shinobi by the name of Buatsui Amaya. She leaped from a rooftop, landing on the assassin's shoulders, and brought her two kodachi down in an attempt to sever the arms at the shoulder.

"_Insolent!_" he hissed, releasing his grip temporarily to throw Gai to the side, and then to smack Amaya into the building she had jumped off of moments earlier. He would have dealt the finishing blow to the her, as she had not recovered yet, if Gai hadn't come charging in just as quickly as he'd been thrown, landing a kick against the assassin's defense.

"Dainamikku-Entori!" he roared, his powerful flying kick sending the assassin flying off the building regardless of having blocked the attack. He immediately followed up by jumping off of the building and attacking from above. "Konoha Gorikki Senpuu!" The kick this time was a spinning attack, and hit the mid-air defense with such force that the assassin was sent into the ground as if he were hit by a pile driver, creating a large crater at the same time. "Is that all you have against Konoha no Kedakai Aoi Moujuu?"

"_How annoying,_" the assassin coughed as the rubble and dust settled down. "_I cannot afford to underestimate you, it seems._"

"Don't forget me!" Amaya retorted as she appeared behind him. "Take this!"

He swung his arm back in an attempt to get rid of what he perceived as an annoying pest, but instead of connecting, Amaya was no longer where she had been. Not behind, but under, as her two kodachi smashed through the soil in an attempt to disable his movement. Unfortunately, the assassin's reaction speed was just as great as his ability to analyze the surroundings and situation, and with a short hop and a spin, he avoided it and retaliated with a mid-air spinning kick that send Amaya tumbling across the floor until she was stopped by Gai.

"Allow me to handle this."

The opponent glanced warily at the green-clothed taijutsu user. He had long since learned not to underestimate the freakish Jounin, and was content with keeping a bit of distance between them, just enough so that there would be time to dodge, or think up a counter.

"Before we fight, answer just one question, assassin," said Gai, interrupting the silence.

"_It depends on the question you ask._"

"Fair enough," he conceded, as any decent shinobi would never reveal anything classified to anyone else, even in a death match. "Why did you attack Kirigakure no Sato?"

"_Because our lord felt like wiping some of the continent's strongest shinobi off of the map._"

"Pardon my rudeness, but let me ask another question. Are the shinobi the three Kage?"

"_I thought it was obvious, what with my attempt to kill the Mizukage,_" the assassin replied, sneering.

It was at this time that Gai actually took a moment to take in the physical features of the assassin in front of him. The hair couldn't be seen as the man was wearing head cloth, but the face was exposed, showing a pair of yellow eyes leering at him. He had been wearing a face mask, but that had been ripped to shreds during their battle, and Gai could see the multitude of scars that were on the assassin's face, enough to rival Morino Ibiki in size and quantity. The top was a black, sleeveless shirt while on the bottom, he wore a pair of black standard-issue shinobi pants, or SISPants for short. Nothing spectacular, as an assassin would've looked like.

"_Enough pause,_" the nameless assassin said, deciding to end the stalemate. "_We fight, here and now._"

With that said, he charged forward with his right arm swinging.

xxxx

"_Pandemonium did not reign; it poured._" John Hendrick Bangs

xxxx

This was some deep shit that they'd fallen into, and Hatake Kakashi was thoroughly displeased with what was going on around him. He and Hiashi had been stopped by a large group of shinobi, and while the two elite Jounin had dispatched them all fairly easily, it had created a large dent in their supply of time. Kiri's ANBU at the northwestern gate would be overrun without reinforcements, which could spell the end for the village's resistance. For all they knew, they might have already been defeated...

"Hiashi, how are their ANBU holding up?" he asked, looking around. They were about halfway to the gate, and already they could see smoke rising from the northwest. "We don't have all day, Hiashi!"

"The ANBU are holding," the Hyuuga replied finally. "They're holding, but they're starting to take some heavy losses."

A flash of movement caught the Kopii Ninja's eyes and in an instant, he was crouched down in front of a Kiri Jounin and three Chuunin.

"You four, come with us. The gates up north need reinforcements."

"B-But, our commanding officer ordered us to the middle of the city to set up an post to fall back on," a Chuunin protested.

"If all goes well, you won't _need_ to fall back!" Kakashi growled menacingly, "Now follow our lead!"

"Do it," the Jounin said, nodding his head. "He makes a point."

"Y-Yes sir!"

At that moment, Hiashi struck, palming the Kiri Jounin away.

"What the hell are you doing, you damned Hyuuga?!" the second Chuunin screamed, just as a screaming ball of fire flew past the spot where the Jounin had been standing on.

"Saving your hanchou, that's what," Hiashi replied nonchalantly. "Mizukage-sama approaches from the south. If we head west at top speed, we may be able to intercept in five... no, four minutes."

"Let's go already," said Kakashi in exasperation. "We don't have time to waste in arguing or debate. We intercept or we don't, we move to reinforce the northwestern gate."

"Roger!" the Kiri squad chorused.

xxxx

"_A life lived in chaos is an impossibility._" Madeleine L'Engle

xxxx

Naruto was _not _a happy camper at the moment. In the span of traveling one-hundred meters, he had been ambushed three times by enemy shinobi. _Three times._ Three fucking times.

"This is ridiculous," he breathed, glaring at the spot in front of him in which he predicted a fourth ambush. Pulling out a kunai, he wrapped an exploding tag around it and took careful aim before throwing. The resulting explosion sent a squad of shinobi flying out, dead and smoking before they hit the ground. "I knew it." He took some care to walk around the scorched, deformed bodies, resisting the urge to wince.

"Really now, you don't have to go around blasting my subordinates to pieces do you?"

"I don't really care at this point," Naruto replied to the voice.

The shinobi behind him took a puff of his cigarette and exhaled the smoke. He leaned against the remains of a wall, all the while keeping his eyes on the blond's backside. As a chuutaichou, he would have preferred giving out orders from outside the battlefield, but at this time, at this battle, and with who his superiors were, he had no choice but to enter the battlefield, and here he was, facing off with an S-Rank, Kage-level shinobi, and a brat no less. There was fear, but he was also indignant that such a child could be stronger than him. He, Fuhen no Takeru, nukenin of Sungakure no Sato, would not stand for that insult.

Removing his cigarette, he flicked it away, and at the moment the butt hit the floor, he was gone.

'_He's coming_,' Naruto knew instinctively, without even having to turn around. A slight tremor under his feet alerted him, and rather than jumping, he leaped to the side and pressed his back against an intact wall, just as large slabs of glass shot out from the floor, rising about ten feet into the air before closing in on themselves, forming a prison that might have been holding him in there.

'_Glass, he turned sand into glass._'

"Oh, you avoided my Hariouza by jumping to the side instead of typically jumping up," Takeru said from within the prison, as he had risen up from the ground and into it. "Well, since you're not in it, I can use it as a shield for myself, unluckily for you."

"We'll see about that," countered Naruto. "Let's see how much heat your shield can take! _Kuro Katon: Karyuu Endan_!" Performing the necessary seals, he took in a deep breath before exhaling with as much force as he could muster.

The unholy black flames burst out of the blond's mouth, encasing the glass prison in unnaturally severe heat. Not surprisingly, the black flames began melting the glass, but out of the corner of his eyes, Naruto saw the ground stir.

_Tenbatsu: Onryou no Kudaru._

'_What the-_'

Separated from the soil, thousands of sand particles rose in the air, but then they started gathering to form sakura petal-sized shards of glass. Slowly, the flames coming from Naruto's mouth dwindled, and eventually came to a halt. He stood there, dumbfounded, as hundreds of glass shards hovered around him.

"There's no escape now, brat!"

"FUCK!" the blond yelled just as the shards flew at him from all directions.

xxxx

"_Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence._" Buddha

xxxx

A shock wave rippled the ground underneath their feet, sending a few ANBU staggering. Kasumi turned to look at where she had felt it emanate from, and could see a large dust cloud rising up into the air. Taking into consideration the cloud's size and the time between the shock wave and the rising of the dust clouds, she determined that it had occurred not too far away. Her curiosity was piqued, but she knew that she had more important duties to attend to, such as the survival of her village. As such, she ignored it and moved on, never knowing how it had actually occurred.

However, what she _did_ know was that the northern sector of the village was under the most pressure, and while her ANBU wanted her to flee the village, as Mizukage, she had to fight. She knew that they knew what she had to do, but they had tried regardless. At least they'd tried.

It was strangely uneventful. In the midst of a small-scale war in a village, one would expect ambushes and a lot more noise than what they were hearing right now. It was just too quiet for a place that was being assaulted. She couldn't even hear distant sounds of battle anymore.

That was when a horrible thought entered her imagination.

What if they had lost already? What if all of the village's shinobi had already been overwhelmed?

These were but just a few 'what ifs' that had emerged as a possible solution to the dead silence. She hated to be thinking about it as such, but Kasumi also knew that it could be the truth.

It could've been the truth, had an ANBU not fallen over with a kunai stuck firmly into the back of his head. That was when she'd realized it, the implications of the soundless surroundings, the reason why such fearful thoughts had run through her head, and the reason why one of her best ANBU had suddenly keeled over dead by a kunai that none of them had seen or heard coming.

"GENJUTSU!" she roared as she formed the Ohitsuji seal. _Genjutsu: Kai!_

The reality around her began to warp, closing in around her, collapsing. With a loud rush of air, the sound of battle and the tremors of the earth returned to her senses.

Immediately, she swung her body back, narrowly avoiding the swing of a katana. The enemy had already been in front of her when she'd dispelled the Genjutsu, but hadn't been fast enough to strike her.

Cursing, she slammed her palms together, grabbing the flat of the blade, wrenched it out of the poor sod's grip, and bashed him powerfully on the head with the sword hilt. Spinning the weapon lightly into the air, Kasumi took hold of the grip and swung her arm backwards, taking off the left arm of the ninja that had tried to sneak up behind her during the chaos. He screamed, holding the stump of his arm, before she swung the blade down to silence him.

As her ANBU entourage finished off the rest of the would-be ambushers, Kasumi had to wonder who had placed that Genjutsu on them. It could hardly have been the work of the cannon fodder that they had just neutralized. She could hardly dwell on it any further because of the rain of shuriken that she spotted in the distance, about two-hundred meters away and heading straight for them. Ordering a swift backwards advance, the group took cover, threw a few shuriken of their own, and sprinted away.

Just when she'd thought they'd gotten away, a movement of several people to the group's east made them halt and take battle stances. The ANBU escort relaxed when they saw that the movement was from two Konoha shinobi and two Kiri squads.

"Kasumi-sama," Kakashi called as he approached, "permission to take one of your squads northwest to reinforce the defensive line?"

"Granted," replied the violet-haired Kage without much thought. "One of the taichou, volunteer and head out with your team. There may be plenty of shinobi inside, but the most are still outside, so I need that perimeter secured." After the three squads and two Konoha shinobi left, she turned to her remaining two squads. "We're moving straight north to see what we can do to hold the lines there. When the northwest gets reinforced, the enemy is going to strike around to flank."

A series of small shock waves shook the ground underneath and a line of explosions and smoke could be seen heading northeast. Stopping, it turned and began traveling northwest... towards them.

"Shit," Kasumi muttered. "Scatter!"

xxxx

"_The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos. The winner will be the one who controls that chaos, both his own and the enemies._" Napoleon Bonaparte

xxxx

"Are you going to keep running?" Takeru yelled, his black hair streaming back from his head as he chased a fleeing blond.

"To hell with you!" Naruto yelled in an equally loud voice, trying to quickly wipe away blood from his eyes. '_Shit, I almost _died_ back there. What the hell was that jutsu?!_' He had head wounds, arm wounds on his left, and chest wounds, a result of Takeru's second jutsu. Dozens of tiny glass shards were still embedded in his wounded areas.

_Raising his left arm over his right, both over his head, Naruto crouched and performed a chakra-boosted leap, jumping straight into the incoming glass shards. Gritting his teeth in pain, he escaped the grasp of Death, only to have Takeru hot on his tail. While keeping himself alive, he had done so by wounding himself, and in this state, he couldn't hope to fight anyone until he healed. Not even the infamous Kurodenkou could fight with one arm, blood impairing his vision, and breath coming in short gasps because of a punctured lung. _

Cursing repeatedly as much as his lungs allowed him to, he barely avoided another bloody death from a falling glass spike and stumbled into a building. Gathering a bit of chakra, he smashed his way through with _Seishin Utsu_ and desperately made his way further, hoping that Takeru would think that he'd trapped his prey. A shadow from overhead appeared on the ground around him. So, it seemed that he hadn't fooled Takeru at all. He made to dodge the falling attack again when dozens of shadows appeared, blanketing a diameter of two-hundred meters.

"Shit." As he looked up, the glass spikes began dropping all at once. "You glassy-eyed shithead!" he screamed.

Brilliant black lightning crackled up into the sky, visible for miles around.

Safely from his perch on a rooftop, Fuhen no Takeru smiled benignly. So his prey could fight back after all. A wide swath of destroyed glass and ground surrounded the blond in question. When Naruto turned his head around, Takeru's smile dropped when he saw that the blue eyes had become red with slitted pupils. '_What... the hell?_' He could, from his distance, see that the glass shards were loosening and popping out of the boy's body and healing itself rapidly. '_Ah shit, it's time to get serious,_' Takeru decided, snapping his fingers. Forty men appeared around Naruto, dressed in all black. Their gleaming black porcelain masks leered at the Kage level ninja, and even he could tell that these weren't just cannon fodder like the others.

"My elites," announced Takeru, smiling again. "I do hope you enjoy what's going to come next, Kurodenkou-kun."

'_**Shit**__,_' Kyuubi growled.

'_Shit indeed, you worthless buffoon._'

'_**!**_'

Takeru took a step forward, stepping on a piece of glass. At the slight noise that was made, ten of the black-garbed ninja burst forward into sprints, weapons drawn so fast that even Naruto doubted he could match that speed. Ten more leaped into the air, soles grabbing onto the sides of the buildings. As those on the buildings withdrew kunai and shuriken and then fired it off, all in a single fluid movement, ten more ninja went through hand seals at lightning speed, preparing a variety of jutsu. The final ten began their own set of hand seals, but more slowly. More concentration was required for them to cast a Genjutsu of huge scale and power.

All this happened in two seconds. Fortunately, Naruto had the reaction speed to match their attack. Unfortunately, he didn't have the ability to take on forty shinobi... not yet, anyway.

Taking a deep breath, he roared in feral anger, discharging a gorge of vile red chakra. The sphere of energy collided with four of the slower shinobi, sending them flying back at breakneck speeds. The other six were in the air, with a barrage of weapons covering their fall towards him. Flaring out chakra in a more concentrated effort, the blond created a shield of red chakra around his person, the weapons hitting and deflecting away from the second skin.

The first of the airborne shinobi landed like cats, and one quickly swung his katana horizontally. This wasn't to injure his opponent, but rather to test the solidity of the chakra and whether or not it could be broken through. His katana was stopped solidly, but the shinobi was already out of range when Naruto reached for him.

'_These guys are fast!_' he realized. '_Not just any ordinary fast, but _realfast_!_'

Two enormous fireballs roared past the enemy shinobi, streaking towards the blond. Opening his mouth, Naruto charged up and fired a shock wave of chakra, which blew through and dissipated the incoming jutsu, only to reveal what was behind the fireballs. A huge, flaming dragon was charging at him. Molten lava was streaming off its hide, a sign that a Katon jutsu had been paired with a Doton jutsu.

_Doton Katon: Ryuudan._

While one of the most basic konbi-jutsu in existence, the force behind it still packed a very powerful bunch. Shock waves fired at the flaming dragon of death only stalled its arrival, as more earth, fire, and lava took the place of the destroyed parts. If he wanted to survive, he'd have to use a jutsu of his own.

A set of quick hand seals and a clap of his hands later, electricity was crackling around the palms of his hand.

_Raiton: Rairyuudan._

The natural weakness of Doton jutsu, the lightning dragons sent forth by Naruto smashed through the lava dragon, flying straight into the crowd of jutsu-performing shinobi and sending them flying. Naruto rushed forward and swung his fist at one of the shinobi. The reaction was not what he'd expected: The shinobi had disappeared and reappeared behind him with such speed that it shocked the blond. The man raised his fist, sending it towards the shorter shinobi's face. Naruto raised his guard, but was surprised yet again when the fist punched deep into his abdomen, sending him traveling backwards into the rest of the enemy ninja.

'_What the f-_'

'_**Genjutsu, you ahou!**_' roared Kyuubi in annoyance. '_**Fleshbag, if I weren't stuck in this cage, I would feast on your flesh for your incompetence!**_'

Scowling in frustration, Naruto tried to dispel the Genjutsu. Tried was the key word, because it was nearly impossible when there were forty shinobi on you while you were trying to concentrate. He winced as pain flooded his body. The direction told him that he'd just been stabbed in the back, but also knew that the wound would be healing rapidly after the withdrawal of the weapon used to inflict it.

"**KUSOTARO!**" he roared, releasing more vile chakra to create some temporary respite from the attacks.

_Genjutsu: Kai!_

While the Genjutsu itself had been very powerful, it was inevitably overpowered by the overwhelming force behind the bijuu's chakra, and the ten shinobi maintaining the Genjutsu reeled back as the chakra washed over them. Changing tactics, all of the shinobi performed hand seals, this time sending an exponentially more destructive attack towards the blond. Takeru watched on humorlessly; it seemed almost unfair at the almost infinite chakra available to his adversary, as well as the insane regeneration speeds that were a side effect of the evil chakra of Kyuubi.

A nameless jutsu with all five elements spiraling to form a single, multi-colored and multi-element dragon roared towards Naruto.

_**Kitsunenomen.**_

At Kyuubi's command, chakra left Naruto by its own will and, while bubbling, formed a physical wall of red chakra. The blond couldn't do much more than stare, for how had Kyuubi initiated a jutsu on its own, and how was he able to control the chakra from within the seal? Unless...

As the dragon neared, the wall of chakra flared massively and brilliantly, taking on the shape of a humongous kitsune head. The pupils of the kitsune contracted and glowed red, and just as the dragon impacted the obstruction, it roared terrifyingly, shaking the ground beneath their feet. Meeting force with a greater force, the meeting of the two jutsu fought briefly and ended in brutality, exploding and taking a large chunk of the block with it. The explosion reached a height of more than a hundred meters and the shock wave shook through the rest of the village.

'_One thing is for sure,_' Takeru decided, '_is that even if he's alive, every ninja, allied and enemy, knows his position and his identity now. There's no escaping Jushin-sama's attendant, Shin._'

xxxx

"_Civilization begins with order, grows with liberty, and dies with chaos._" William James Durant

xxxx

Shin felt it, the evil chakra of the Kyuubi no Youko exploding out from an area near the center of the village. He could only help but smirk as he finished off the last of the Chuunin squad that had unluckily come across him. He would use the blond's peril to his advantage, to lure out the one he was seeking. The two were both of lightning, but the other, Shirodenkou, like the name suggested, had pure and untainted lightning at their disposal. Jushin-sama had awarded the ninja the name for the camaraderie the person held with the Kurodenkou. There _were _other factors involved, but none so much as to create a 'pair'.

He breathed in deeply; the scent of blood, dust, metal, ash, and even the scent of fear and mayhem reached his nose. They were good smells. Battlefield smells. A smell he loved to no end.

That was why he worked for Jushin-sama.

That was why he was doing what he just did.

That was why he loved the battlefield.

Because he reveled in chaos and loved the gore and slaughter and celebrated in his opponent's blood. A Bloodthirster, that's who he was.

Shin laughed.

The hunt was on.

xxxx

"_Anarchy is not chaos, but order without control._" David Layson

xxxx

Maito Gai was dead serious. He sidestepped a mad lunge and performed a rapid high kick, sending his opponent barreling backwards. Assassins would normally have sacrificed stamina for size, speed, and maneuverability, but that was not the case here. The would-be assassin of the Mizukage had plenty of stamina, as well as physical strength and unbelievable reaction time. He held out his left arm to block a spinning kick and lashed back with his right. It connected, but his foe seemed to have an unusually high tolerance for pain, as well as a very durable body. Gai noticed that his strikes weren't doing as much damage as they should have been doing with the Kaimon open.

"_You will have to do more than dodge and counter,_" goaded the assassin, grinning. "_Otherwise, you leave me no choice but to trap you in a situation where defending becomes impossible._"

"Let's see you try!" Gai roared challengingly. "I am Konoha no Kedakai-"

A ferocious swipe from the assassin was barely dodged by a series of back flips, but he was struck by a follow-up attack, sending him sprawling across the ground like a doll. Such strength! Gai glared at his opponent fiercely as he got back to his feet unsteadily. The claw-arms were slow and overbearing, but packed more punch than he himself did with the Kaimon released. His opponent charged him again, using the disorientation to strike again. Gai blocked it, but with it, he winced in pain. His eyes widened as he was thrown back. That last attack... it must have broken some of his ribs!

"_Enough theatrics!_" the assassin hissed, grinning. "_I am aiming to obliterate now!_"

Closing his clawed hands into fists, he slammed them together and smashed the ground with both fists.

_Doton: Tsuchi Zuhan Danmaku._

Very, very large slabs of the earth lifted themselves off of the ground, almost one foot thick and three feet long.

"_Go._"

Like bullets, which incidentally don't exist in this 'verse, the earthen slabs blasted forward, aiming to crush their green target.

Time seemed to travel in slow motion. Somehow, Gai knew that getting hit by one of those blocks of earth could end his life, by knocking him out and making him vulnerable to attack. He could see his life flashing before his very eyes, and it was actually quite heartbreaking for him to know that this could be it. Lee's image flashed across his mind, and his eyes hardened. No, he could not live this world just yet. Not without imparting all of his knowledge to that unfortunate boy, not without atoning for his sins, and not without defeating Kakashi to achieve the status of 'superior ninja' over his eternal rival. He could not die yet.

_Kyumon, Seimon._

"KAI!"

The surge of chakra that burst forth from his soul was extraordinary and tremendous. Before the earthen plates could touch him, Gai was gone from his position at speeds that one could mistake for the speed of sound. In a second, he was past the blocks, he was past the shinobi, and he had reached the set of buildings several dozens of meters behind. Landing heavily, which caused the wall to scream in stress and crumble under the pressure, he leaped off of it as a platform, straight towards the enemy's backside. Terrifying speed and overwhelming power combined together as he elbowed the assassin, sending the man flying forward very rapidly. Then he was gone again, in front of the still-flying assassin, who was now trying to defend himself.

"Konoha Shoufuu!" Gai roared, leaning down and performing a rapid vertical kick to send the man flying upwards. He disappeared yet again, this time appearing in front of the assassin, arms outstretched to his sides, palms out.

_Shomon, Tomon. Asa Kujaku._

"SEISHUN!" screamed Gai as he begun his attack. A series of strikes and punches that were so fast they blurred struck the assassin, who kept swinging around like a marionette. The chakra-empowered punches, striking so hard in so many different areas, created what looked like a beautiful multicolored peacock tail behind the assassin, the result of chakra residue from the attacks. "HO!" The final strike sent the man flying away at breakneck speeds, sending him smashing through half a dozen buildings.

"Is... he dead?" Amaya dared to ask from her safe perch. A light drizzle had begun by this time, and her blue hair was dripping water. Her chestnut colored eyes eyed the impact area warily. "Whatever the case, let's get out of here. I don't want to be around if he's still alive."

"Agreed," Gai muttered, palm against his chest. "Medics can heal superficial wounds, but broken and fractured bones fall into a different area. I'm going to have to fight with these ribs as they are, so I will need you to cover for me."

"Alright," agreed Amaya in return. "You saved my ass back there, so I'll keep yours safe."

'_Such foul language._'

It was at this time that the explosion occurred, shaking the ground. The two ninja could see the smoke not too far from their current position.

"Care to check it out?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered.

xxxx

"_Chaos, that reigns here_

_In double night of darkness and of shades._" John Milton

xxxx

He could see her. Kasumi was barely visible around the corner, but she was there.

'_Ah,_' Naruto thought disappointedly, '_I finally find her when it's too late for me to escape._'

She raised a finger to her lips and disappeared behind the corner. The particulates in the air were starting to disperse, and he could see those same forty shinobi. They were just standing there, nonplussed and unafraid. Damn.

"Impressive shield," praised Takeru from atop a merchant stall, clapping slowly. "Meet force with an equal or greater force and effectively cancel it out, therefore negating any damage directed towards you. Brilliant."

Glare.

"Ehehe, ready to give up?"

"Suck my dick," Naruto growled bestially. "No, in fact, I wouldn't even want you near my dick in the first place. Beat it!"

"Oho, acting like a hotshot, are we?" Shin asked from behind the blond.

Surprised, he whirled around to see nothing there.

"Behind you."

He turned around again and once again saw nothing. He looked at the elite ninja across from him. If he didn't already know that they were dead serious about their jobs, he would've sworn they'd be laughing their asses off behind their masks.

"I'm behind you again."

Naruto roared in frustration and anger, creating a rapid-expansion physical chakra barrier. A spherical ball of red chakra exploded outwards, but touched nothing. The next time Naruto turned around, the man was still there, albeit farther than he had been before the barrier had been set up. Short, white hair and what looked to be black ceremonial robes. The man's eyes were a piercing shade of blue, quite different from his own sapphire-colored ones. The man seemed to have what looked like a perpetual smirk and frown at the same time.

"My name is simply Shin," he introduced, bowing slightly.

"Hello, simply Shin," Naruto replied mockingly, sneering, which was enough to cause a reaction.

"How childish," Shin mumbled, chuckling a bit. "However, how childish will you act when I say that I am here to kill you?"

_Suiton: Bakusui Shouha._

The ground began to tremble, which gave way to shaking, which finally gave way to a huge flood of water that came pouring from every alley and street in the vicinity. The buildings weren't spared either, and were destroyed by the immense pressure placed on it by the jutsu. Everything in the vicinity was to be washed away.

"Shit! Who the hell did that?!" Takeru yelled angrily as he struggled to keep himself from being submerged. Standing on water was child's play, but when that water is disturbed so that the distance between the surface as well as the stability of the water itself fluctuates rapidly, walking on water becomes extremely difficult. "Shit! When I found out who did this..."

Shin frowned. It was an intervention, but not from the person that he'd been expecting. He and Naruto alone were the only ones that did not budge at all.

For Naruto, there was the barrier keeping the water out.

For Shin, it was his immense aura that kept the water at bay, acting like a barrier, and this was something that didn't go unnoticed by the blond.

'_Not chakra, but just pure aura... Not even I can do _that_. Just who the hell is this guy?_'

"I'm sure you must be thinking just who I am, correct?"

"What's it to you?" replied Naruto scathingly, his eyes narrowing. '_How did he guess correctly?_'

"Now you must be asking yourself how I knew what you were thinking about?"

He did not reply this time around, but instead began experimenting with the red barrier around him. Taking a step, he discovered that the barrier moved along with him. Naruto also knew that Shin should be able to move as well, all things considered. It was only an aura keeping the water at bay after all. An aura surrounds a person, whereas normal chakra barriers stay in place and do not move unless it is designed to or the center of the barrier, therefore the seal, is moved.

However, Naruto decided, Shin was at a disadvantage, no matter how powerful. Unlike himself, Shin did not possess the vile chakra of Kyuubi to invade the space between them and attack from a distance. Being in water, the pressure on their bodies were greater than when surrounded by air, but the water around them also made them 'lighter' in a sense. By being in the water, they were displacing it. At the same time, the water wanted to return to its original placement, and was placing force on them upwards, causing buoyancy. Logically, if Shin performed a jutsu, Naruto should be able to dodge it, because the water pressure would either crush the projectiles or slow their travel, depending on the pressure. This, of course, was tested when Shin placed a hand on the dry ground beneath him.

_Doton: Kazangan Doryuudan no Jutsu._

A bronze dragon head emerged from the earthen floor just outside of the aura around Shin, who smiled snidely at the blond. Sound exists only by passing through something, whether it be air or water. In this case, water. "Good luck!" Shin called out.

The dragon head's eyes lighted, and Naruto stared in horror as a stream of lava exited the dragon's mouth and headed straight for him. The lava was coming in too quick for the water to cool into a solid, because new lava remelted the solid back into lava, etc... What's worse, it was making progress towards him! Naruto tried moving to the side, but the dragon head just swiveled to follow him. What the hell? Naruto had no idea how much punishment the chakra barrier could take, and right now, he wasn't willing to wait and find out. He began strafing to the side to escape the stream of lava that was closing in.

'_Shit, I did _not_ plan for this!_'

Just as the lava would have reached him, the dragon head's eyes dulled and the head crumbled apart. This stopped the flow of lava, fortunately enough for the blond, but that seemed to only make Shin more amused.

"The water level has started to recede, so I'll make this quick," he called out, placing his palms on the ground again.

_Yougan Ryuu Bakuha no Jutsu_.

The ground opened up again, and what looked like lava entered the water solidly, before wisping away into steam.

"What the hell was that piece of shit?" Naruto scoffed, smirking.

"My, my, how overconfident," retorted Shin. "Attack."

The superheated steam, taking on the form of a dragon, blasted forward towards the blond. Being an alternate form of water, it easily and quickly traveled the distance between the two shinobi.

"SHIT!"

The steam dragon coiled around the red chakra barrier, causing both the barrier and the dragon to hiss.

"The air around me, and the water, it's getting hot," the blond realized as he began sweating. "Damn it, is he trying to make me burn up in here instead of breaking through the barrier?!" Deciding he no longer had the luxury to counter, he took up his own offensive with a set of hand seals.

_Fuuton: Kaze no Yaiba._

'_I see,_' Shin observed. '_Nice idea._'

Pulling his right arm back, he struck forward forcefully, letting go of the wind surrounding his hand. Passing through the inside of the barrier into the water, it turned into a tornado of wind blades. With the spinning affecting the water, the tornado became a whirlpool of destruction that spun its way towards the white-haired ninja. Even in water, wind was a very potent force, and Shin knew he'd only have seconds before the whirlpool reached him. Clever, very clever. Spreading his feet and positioning his arms, he got into a neutral stance. Left foot forward, torso turned right, arms up but hands down, he then turned his torso and pushed his arms outward.

"Yougan Kabe!" he shouted.

Like the other times, the jutsu appeared just outside of his aura. This time it was a defensive jutsu, but one which had Naruto gaping like a fish out of water. A wall of lava thirty feet wide and twenty feet high rose from the ground. Lava, being molten rock, was a liquid that quickly hardened by being cooled. Becoming solid, it would hinder the whirlpool and the wind blades in it, he realized. Then he realized something else. The water was only about a foot above his head now. That being said, the upper portion of Shin's body was already out of the water.

The wall of cooled lava crumbled as it took the punishment of the earlier jutsu. As one of the pieces fell though, it obscured Shin's body behind itself. When it passed, Shin was no longer there.

'_What?_'

There was a pull on his gut and he ducked down quickly, avoiding the horizontal slash that had cut through the barrier.

'_**That could not be helped. You are still at the no-tail stage, where the barriers are the weakest.**_' Kyuubi explained.

Performing a back flip, he leaped out of a vertical strike and then released his aura and chakra at the same time, repelling Shin away from him.

"It's over," Shin announced to the surprised Naruto. "I'm too close for you to dodge what's coming. Doton: Tsuchi Tsunami no Jutsu."

A wave of earth and rock rose up, fifty feet high and seventy feet across. It roared across the short distance towards Naruto, who had no time to do anything before it was upon him.

'_Kyuubi!_'

_**Kitsune no Tate.**_

Just as a very powerful barrier of extremely dark red chakra surrounded Naruto, another jutsu appeared on the field.

"Taijuu Kouten no Saiketsu!"

Multiple spinning tubes of lightning tore past Naruto and impacted with the giant wave of earth and rocks, boring itself into it before they all exploded into huge bursts of electricity, taking apart the wall as if it were nothing. Eyes wide, Naruto turned around as he recognized the chakra signature. There, not too far away, someone in baggy pants and hooded sweater. He could recognize that brilliant forest-green hair anywhere.

"You-"

"Heh, Amatsuyochi Masaki, reporting!" she announced loudly and confidently.

Shin was smiling. Not a kind smile or a pitying smile. It was predatory, and there was only one phrase for him that could sum up what just happened.

'_Target acquired, mission start._'

xxxx

"_Chaos is the embodiment of the culminated sins and evils of the universe. It taints all._" Anonymous

xxxx

**Vocabulary**

Ahou – Fool(s)

Chuutaichou – Company commander

Fuhen no Takeru – Takeru the Eternal

Hanchou – Squad leader

Konoha no Kedakai Aoi Moujuu – Konoha's Prideful Green Beast

Kusotaro – Asshole(s)

Seishun – Springtime of Youth

Shidanchou – Division commander

**Jutsu List**

_General_

**Asa Kujaku (Morning Peacock) –** B-Rank – One of Maito Gai's unique moves, it is used in conjunction with the fifth gate Shomon or higher. At that stage, the speed at which the strikes are delivered are so fast and saturated so heavily with chakra that it escapes through the enemy, creating the image of the multicolored peacock tail purely by chakra discharge from the strikes. Like many techniques involving the use of the Hachimon, it places a heavy strain on the user.

**Genjutsu Kai (Illusion Technique Cancel)** – D-Rank – This jutsu is not E-Rank because it is not necessary to know it before graduating a ninja academy. The standard and universal method of canceling the effects of Genjutsu on a person, it is performed by disrupting the chakra flow of the person affected. Because Genjutsu, when placed, rely on the flow of the victim's chakra to stay in place, a disruption could collapse the imaginary world. The stronger the Genjutsu, the larger the disruption has to be.

**Hachimon: Kaimon (Eight Gates, Initial Gate) –** Unranked – Opening the first gate, Kaimon, the Initial Gate, the user removes the brain's built-in inhibitors that prevent the body's muscles from exerting their full force. They also prevent the muscles from literally tearing themselves apart through overuse. However, there may come a time when a person is willing to risk their body for some cause, and the temporary increase in power that comes as a result of full use of the muscles may be their only option.

**Kyumon (Heal Gate) –** Unranked – The second gate's opening helps in the user's tolerance of gate usage. When this gate is opened, it forcibly restores a great deal of the user's stamina. This ability chiefly comes into play later, as the user's body becomes more accustomed to opening gates. The Kyumon helps to ease the burden that other gates place on the body. This, however, is a temporary fix because the strain of the usage of gates requires the user to exert more force to get their body to do what it wants.

**Seimon (Life Gate) –** Unranked – The third gate Seimon restricts the flow of the chakra from user's soul. By releasing this gate, the user enables a great surge of chakra through the user's body, bestowing an explosive increase in strength. This explosion in power also has a strange side effect, that being that the user's skin obtains a reddish hue and their pupils no longer become visible.

**Shomon (Harm Gate) –** Unranked – The fourth gate Shomon is the crucial gate when it comes controlling the amount on pain the body feels, what makes the body feel good, and what causes the pain. Releasing this gate completely disables the user's pain receptors thus making him immune to all pain – or any physical feeling at that. The inability of feeling pain allows the user to be a perfect fighting machine.

**Tomon (Limit Gate) –** Unranked – This gate restricts the muscles from using their maximum power and prevents them from being sprained. The body does not use the full potential of muscles to prevent reduce the risk of them getting strained or deteriorated through reckless or abusive use. Combined with Kyumon, this gate really helps to temper the force provided by the gates.

**Konoha Shoufuu (Leaf Rising Wind) –** C-Rank – A rather low-ranked Taijutsu technique, this move is nevertheless very important in the set up of high-damage attacks such as Omote Renge, Ura Renge, Asa Kujaku, and a variety of other techniques belonging in the repertoire of Gouken users such as Rock Lee or Maito Gai. It can also be used to initiate combos rather than set up.

**Seishin Utsu (Spirit Strike) –** A-Rank – A jutsu that is similar to the Rasengan in that it requires no hand seals, the user simply forces out a great amount of chakra out of their arm, from elbow to the tip of the finger. Unlike the Chidori or Raikiri, which forms a ball of lightning in the user's palm, the user manipulates the chakra outside of the body to sharpen, creating an 'aura' of destruction around the arm. Anything that comes into contact with the chakra will be cut, and being hit directly will result in death. It's flaws and counter-counters are the same as the Rasengan.

_Special_

Hariouza (A Throne of Glass)

Kitsunenomen (Mask of the Fox)

Kitsune no Tate (Shield of the Fox)

Tenbatsu: Onryou no Kudaru (Divine Wrath: Vengeful descent of the Vengeful Ghost)

_Earth_

Doton: Kazangan Doryuudan no Jutsu (Earth Release: Volcanic Dragon Blast Technique)

Doton: Tsuchi Tsunami no Jutsu (Earth Release: Earth Giant Wave Technique)

Doton: Tsuchi Zuhan Danmaku (Earth Release: Earth Plate Barrage)

Yougan Kabe (Lava Wall)

Yougan Ryuu Bakuha no Jutsu (Lava Dragon Explosion Technique)

_Fire_

_Lightning_

Kouten no Saiketsu (Heaven's Judgment)

Kumo Tate no Jutsu (Cloud Shield Technique)

Raiton: Rairyuudan

_Wind_

Fuuton: Kaze no Yaiba (Wind Release: Wind Sword)

_Water_

Suiton: Bakusui Shouha (Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave)

_Konbi_

Doton Katon: Ryuudan (Earth Release, Fire Release: Dragon Blast)


End file.
